14 Facts About Caucasus Mountains

Caucasus Mountains are a mountain range at the intersection of Asia and Europe.

Caucasus Mountains include the Greater Caucasus in the north and Lesser Caucasus in the south.

The Greater and Lesser Caucasus Mountains ranges are connected by the Likhi Range, and to the west and east of the Likhi Range lie the Colchis Plain and the Kur-Araz Lowland.

Geologically, the Caucasus Mountains belong to the Alpide belt system that extends from southeastern Europe into Asia and is considered a border between the two continents.

The Greater Caucasus Mountains are mainly composed of Cretaceous and Jurassic rocks with the Paleozoic and Precambrian rocks in the higher regions.

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The evolution of the Caucasus Mountains began from the Late Triassic to the Late Jurassic during the Cimmerian orogeny at the active margin of the Tethys Ocean while the uplift of the Greater Caucasus Mountains is dated to the Miocene during the Alpine orogeny.

Caucasus Mountains formed largely as the result of a tectonic plate collision between the Arabian Plate moving northwards with respect to the Eurasian Plate.

The crest of the Greater Caucasus Mountains is usually taken to define the Greater Caucasus Watershed which marks the continental boundary between Asia and Europe for the region between the Black and Caspian seas.

Caucasus Mountains are known for the high amount of snowfall, although many regions which are not located along the windward slopes do not receive nearly as much snow.

Caucasus Mountains have a varied landscape which mainly changes according to elevation and distance from large bodies of water.

Northern slopes of the Greater Caucasus Mountains are covered by oak, hornbeam, maple, and ash forests at lower elevations while birch and pine forests take over at higher elevations.

The southeastern slopes of the Greater Caucasus Mountains are covered by beech, oak, maple, hornbeam, and ash forests.

The southwestern slopes of the Greater Caucasus Mountains are covered by Colchian forests at lower elevations with coniferous and mixed forests taking over at higher elevations.

Northern and western slopes of the Lesser Caucasus Mountains are characterized both by Colchian and other deciduous forests at lower elevations while mixed and coniferous forests dominate at higher elevations.