1. Global karst stone forest landscape distribution
The research shows that the formation of sword-like karst is the result of the comprehensive action of geological, climatic and hydrological conditions. Due to the harsh formation conditions, there are few sword-shaped karst or stone forest landforms in the world, which are only developed in a few tropical and subtropical regions. Some areas with large areas of carbonate rocks, such as Europe and America, have similar sword-like karst landforms on the surface, but they all belong to "high stone buds" or "residual rocks", rather than real sword-like karst or stone forest.
(1) The distribution of sword karst and similar landforms in mainland China.
Mediterranean region
France: Similar to Yunnan Stone Forest, Montpellier Revilliod in Kausonova, southern France (Figure 3-60), with an area of 1.2km2 and an altitude of 800m. Jurassic dolomite was divided by staggered fracture network. Due to rain erosion and weathering, the cracks widened continuously, forming undulating terrain and grotesque shapes. This dolomite karst landform is very typical in the cold temperate regions of Central Europe and limestone regions in the eastern Alps. The formation of Montpe-lier-le-Vieux landform is influenced by the humid climate of the Atlantic Ocean. It rains all the year round and dolomite is slowly eroded.
It is also located in the Causenoir area, adjacent to Montpellier-le-Vieux, and the Chaos du Rajol area, with an area of 3.4km2 and an altitude of 170 ~ 256m. After a long period of weathering and corrosion, some tall and spectacular sword-shaped stone pillars remain in this area.
Turkey: Jinniu Mountain in southern Turkey is a plateau with an area of several square kilometers. The late tertiary Miocene conglomerate is mainly exposed, and there are two small and deep karst canyons on the edge of the plateau. Due to erosion, irregular rock cones and pillars several meters high are formed in this area (Figure 3-6 1).
Figure 3-60 Forest columnar karst in Causenoir, southern France
Fig. 3-6 1 columnar karst of Jinniushan forest in southern Turkey
Spain: Solares area in northern Spain is called "hillside with rock needles". In the humid temperate climate, limestone in this area is divided into independent rock pillars by karst fractures with a depth of 6 ~ 10m (Figure 3-62).
The southern Tolcalde Antquela karst plateau is1377m above sea level. The annual precipitation is 800 mm, and there are dry months in summer. The strata are Jurassic dolomite and dolomitic limestone, with developed bedding and dense cracks, and forest columnar karst landform similar to "building ruins" with an area of 28km2. Its modern landform is due to the dynamic action of the periglacial margin, leaving rock pillars as high as 8m in the rapidly eroded area.
An ancient karst was also unearthed in Cerro de Hierro, Sierra Morena, southern Spain (Figure 3-63), which was developed from a large dissolution trace of Paleozoic limestone, with an altitude of 700 ~ 800 m. This ancient karst was exposed by iron ore mining at 1950 ~ 1970. Ancient karst is similar to Shilin in form.
Lebanon: The limestone formation in the east of Jeita, Lebanon, is divided into vertical blocks and columns by cracks as deep as 20 meters. Due to the diversity of lithology and the porosity and solubility of limestone strata, the block-column combination characteristics are like building ruins. The formation of this landform is the comprehensive result of erosion, strong dissolution and weathering in modern rainy season under the humid conditions of ancient climate. Frost and snowfall lasting for many days in winter and high temperature exposure lasting for many days in summer promote the decomposition of rocks.
Oceania
Australia: Australia has a certain range of limestone, which is distributed along the coast, but it is basically the stratum after Cretaceous. It is distributed intermittently on the northern, eastern and southern edges of the mainland. Due to the late formation time, dry climate and weak running water, the karst landscape in limestone area is generally atypical. However, in some places, due to the special geographical environment, Australia has formed a landscape similar to the "sword", and a few places still have the "dragon tooth" ridge, as well as a landscape similar to the stone forest.
Figure 3-62 Forest pillar karst in Solaris, northern Spain.
Figure 3-63 Forest pillar karst in Sierra Morena area of southern Spain.
In the Snow Mountain Park in New South Wales, there is a place called Yalong Gobi. There is a small sword-shaped karst, which develops into a short, thick and high stone bud karst along the cracks on the dense massive limestone of Silurian system, and the individual is isolated. There is also a karst in the Silurian strata of Bongonia Nature Reserve in New South Wales. Known as the "Dragon Tooth" landform. Chiragon (Figure 3-64), located at the northern end of Queensland, has a karst landform similar to the Stone Forest in Yunnan. The high stone buds are pointed and needle-shaped, and the height of individual buds can reach 20 m. Because of its large diameter, it is often isolated and not connected together, which is different from Shilin.
Jiankarst in North America, South America, Africa and Chinese mainland is underdeveloped, and there are few reports about karst stone forest landscape.
(2) The distribution of sword karst in tropical islands.
Tsingy de Benaraha Strict Nature Reserve in Bemalaha Nature Reserve of Madagascar (Madagascacar).
Madagascar is located in the southern hemisphere, east of the African continent, with an area of 595800km2, and is the fourth largest island in the world. Surrounded by the ocean, it forms a relatively independent geographical unit. Madagascar has a long history. The east side is steep and the west side is gentle. The mountain faces east, with the highest peak at 2700 meters above sea level. The western part of Madagascar is a sedimentary rock area. The strata gradually change from east to west, including Paleozoic sandstone shale, Jurassic limestone, Cretaceous and Tertiary sandstone, marl and Quaternary sedimentary rocks. These rocks extend in strips from north to south and uplift westward in the middle of the island, making the sedimentary rock belt bow. The limestone belt is therefore divided into north and south parts. The climate on the island is basically tropical, and the annual average temperature on the island is above 20℃. Due to the difference in precipitation between the east and the west, there are two climate types: rainforest-monsoon forest and savanna. The annual precipitation in the east can exceed 3,000 mm, and it varies from 350 mm to 2,000 mm in the west, with more in the north and less in the south. There are many rivers on the island, all of which originate from the mountains in the central plateau and flow out to both sides. The flow is short, but due to abundant precipitation and strong river cutting erosion, valleys often form canyon landforms. There are a large number of animal and plant populations, and some endemic and endemic species have been preserved because of their geographical isolation from the mainland. The vegetation of the whole island can be divided into two types: tropical forest and tropical savanna. The former is distributed on the windward slope on the east side of the island, and the latter is widely distributed on the leeward slope on the west side of the island. Due to natural and man-made reasons, tropical forest area is less than 10% of the whole island area, and shrub grassland accounts for a large proportion.
Figure 3-64 Forest Columnar Karst in Chilago, Queensland, Australia
The limestone in Madagascar is distributed in a small area and formed late, mainly in Jurassic strata. From north to south, it extends in a narrow strip. In the middle of the island, due to the extrusion and cutting of basement granite, it is divided into north and south parts. Because limestone is distributed between Paleozoic sedimentary rocks and Cenozoic sediments, Paleozoic sedimentary rocks are soft and easy to be eroded into depressions, while hard limestone rises abruptly to form cliffs. A long north-south cliff belt was formed between limestone and Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. From this, to the west, the terrain on the west side of the limestone belt is uneven, and a unique peak karst landform is developed. Further west, the karst landform at the summit gradually disappears, and the karst landform at the dome appears. The limestone area of the whole island is about 20,000 square kilometers. There are five limestone areas in the shape of sword peaks, namely Ankarana, Narinda, Namoroda, Bemaraha and Bemarivo. The five peak karst areas have a total area of about 7,000 km2, which are distributed intermittently in the west of the island, among which Bemalaha has the largest area, reaching 4,000 km2, followed by Nalin, with 1500km2, and the other three areas are between 150 ~ 500 km2. Jurassic limestone pagodas and Jianfeng are widely developed in these five areas. The Jianfeng with a height of 1 ~ 10~40m is very sharp, like a blade, while the Jianfeng with a height of 10~40m is shaped like a sword. The most typical peak landform is distributed in Bemalaha.
Bemalaha Nature Reserve is located at 18 7' ~ 19 6' south latitude and 44 6' ~ 44 8' east longitude, with an area of 1520km2 and an altitude of 150 ~ 700m (Figure 3-65). This protected area was listed in the World Natural Heritage List on 1990, and was designated as a high-level protected area, which needs strict protection. Here is the savanna climate, with an annual average temperature of 26℃, with the monthly average temperature above 20℃. The annual rainfall is 980mm; 65438+February to March of the following year is the rainy season, and the rest is the dry season from June to August.
Figure 3-65 Sword Karst in Benaha Nature Reserve, Madagascar
Bemalaha is composed of Jurassic limestone, which is a monoclinal mountain range with high east and low west. On the east side of the cliff is a north-south cliff, and on the east side of the cliff is a loose sedimentary rock depression, where alluvial materials eroded from the crystalline rock highlands are piled up. Hard limestone has strong erosion resistance and forms cliffs. These cliffs are 300 ~ 400 meters higher than Manapolo Valley, and extend from north to south for tens of kilometers. From the cliff to the west, the slope of the ground slows down and is covered with dome-shaped limestone hills. These domes have steep slopes and gentle tops. The most typical sword limestone rock mass is distributed in the south of the reserve. The carbonate rocks here are high in purity, containing 95% ~ 98% calcium carbonate, and the porosity is about 1% ~ 3%, so they are exposed rocks. Sharp high stone buds rise from the ground, ranging in height from a few meters to 30-40 meters. The edge is very sharp, like a blade, and the tallest is like a sword. They are closely connected to form a knife wall. Because it is a typical limestone terrain, the local land name "Tsingy" is used to represent this terrain-the peak karst terrain, which represents the dense jungle-like "Shilin" landform.
Bemalaha sword stone forest is very developed, with a large number and considerable scale. The stone pillars extend out of the ground, with different shapes such as blade, sword and sawtooth, and the landscape is magnificent. At the same time, due to the joint development, vertical rock walls are formed everywhere. There is also a big hippo crossing the Nanbulu River in the reserve. From east to west, the river goes deep into the valley and descends step by step, forming steep valleys and waterfalls. The banks of the river stand in a narrow valley shape, and the water level of the river can change above 10m m, and the maximum waterfall drop is above 100m m. Once the rainy season comes, the scene is very spectacular. Due to the hot climate, abundant rainfall and strong weathering. Hard limestone forms a very broken karst landform under the action of external force, which is very difficult to pass through. Only in the dry season can you go downstream, and usually you need a helicopter.
Gunung Mulu National Park (Sarawak, Malaysia) Mount Ulu National Park in Sarawak, Malaysia.
Gunung Mulu is located between the fourth and fifth administrative districts in Sarawak, Malaysia, and borders Brunei in the northeast (Figure 3-66). Geographical location: 3 56' ~ 416' north latitude,114 47' ~115 ... covers an area of 52.865 hectares. The altitude varies greatly, ranging from 38 to 2376 meters. Mulu Island has a tropical monsoon climate: it is controlled by the northeast monsoon from February to March and the southwest monsoon from May to June every year. The average annual rainfall is over 5000mm. Although there is no obvious dry season here, the rainfall is still seasonal, with the peaks in April-May and 10- 1 1 and the lowest in August-September. The relative humidity is very high, rarely below 90. The annual high temperature and low land are 26℃, and the highland 14 ~ 18℃.
Figure 3-66 Jiankarst in Wulushan National Park, Sarawak, Malaysia
There are many types of topography and geological landforms in Wulushan National Park. It is located in Kalimantan syncline and contains all major rock types. Lu Wu Block covers the western half of the whole park, and consists of shale and sandstone with a thickness of 4,000m to 5,000mm, including the main peak of Gunung Mulu with a height of 2,376m ... which is characterized by deeply cut sand, deep valley water system and dense dendrites. The karst limestone in Melinau Block is distributed on the west slope of Lu Wu, and consists of Gunung Benarat (1515m), Gu-nung Apil (750m), south Qiu shan(457m) and other mountains, with a width of about 5km and a length of about 5km. They have steep cliffs and round or needle-shaped peaks. The limestone here is very pure, white and gray carbonate rocks and timely limestone, belonging to tertiary hard carbonate rocks, with a thickness of 1500mm and an occurrence of 40-50w. The thickness of a single layer is generally more than 50m, with thick weathered soil and few outcrops. The canyon with a cliff height difference of 600 meters takes water from the limestone in Lu Wu, cuts the mountain between Guna Abi Peak and Guna Benala Peak, enters the alluvial plain, and then enters Sungei TutLih in the southwest. Rivers erode limestone and flow into complex cave systems in rocks along faults, bedding and joints. Setap shale block occupies the northwest corner of the park, with clay shale in the valley and sedimentary rocks and timely sandstone on the slope. This plot was strongly cut and eroded by rivers, forming a grid-like water network. Along the border of Brunei, there are narrow Belait outcrops alternating with shale and sandstone, mainly sandstone. Between here and limestone is the alluvial plain, where sediments change from clay and clastic rocks to timely gravels, which are covered with boulders. The topography of the plain fluctuates greatly, because the abandoned river channel is gradually filled with rich sediment. The modern water system is developed and there are many deep rivers.
Wulushan National Park has two prominent karst landscapes. One is a well-developed cave. The second is the sword-shaped stone forest. The stone forest area is very small, about 5 hectares, between two groups of mutually perpendicular joints with strike of 5 and 95. It is distributed on the steep slope on the north side of Gunabi Peak, with an altitude of1200 ~1600 m. The precipitation here is as high as 5500 mm In this small area, there are a lot of sword-shaped karst landforms. Vertical joints are well developed, and the fracture surface is almost vertical, forming a rock sword peak. The tip of the sword is like a thin sword with a sharp blade and an inclination of 70 ~ 80. There are many sword peaks, and there are about 100 sword-like rock masses in the main group, with a general height of 30 ~ 40m and a maximum height of 45m, which is much higher than that of Yunnan Shilin. The upper part of the rock pillar is white, and there are few algae attached to it, which may be due to abundant and frequent precipitation and strong tropical sunlight, which makes organisms unable to survive. But there are mosses and lianas under Shifeng rock mass. There are three groups of obvious grooves on the blade surface of the upper part of the blade, each group is 15mm wide and 500mm long, and the maximum groove width is 100 ~ 600 mm, which is longer than100 ~ 600 mm. In addition, the main peak of Guna and the nearby Benara Mountain are also distributed, but the height of Jianfeng Peak is relatively low, about 10m. Due to the development of joints, there are many cracks in the rock mass, most of which have been filled with vegetation and soil, but some cracks are bottomless. The ground in Jianfeng karst area is very rugged, and the dense tropical jungle makes it almost impassable. Looking down from the air by plane, the sharp stone buds rise abruptly, and clusters of sword fronts are crowded together, and the gray rock mass is particularly pure. This Jianfeng karst landscape is very spectacular.
Mount Kaikind, Mount Kaikind, Papua New Guinea.
There are two sword-shaped karsts in Papua New Guinea, which are located in Mount Muller and Mount Kaijingde (Figure 3-67). The latter is located near the forest line and developed on Miocene limestone. Due to the continuous uplift since the Quaternary, the present elevation has reached about 3,000 m, the elevation of Mueller Mountain is 2,900-3,000 m, and the elevation of Kaijingde Mountain is 2,600-3,700 m, which is the highest distribution area of pinnacle karst in the world. The sword karst of Kaijingde Mountain is distributed near the forest line and located in the moss forest. The average temperature is only 5 ~ 8℃, with more precipitation and a cold and humid climate. Miocene thick limestone mixed with calcareous mudstone and flint is distributed here. Sword karst is developed in some places with large rock thickness. Due to the development of rock joints, the cracks are very wide, and the vertically standing rock mass dissolves into an upright sword-like shape in a humid climate, showing a blade shape. The top of the ridge is composed of this sword-like rock mass, forming a sharp ridge. Another karst landscape-annular depression is also developed at the joint intersection. The diameter of the depression is about 100 m and the depth is 50 ~ 100 m. It has an almost upright circular rock wall with dense plants growing at the bottom and a steep ridge at the top.
Figure 3-67 Sword Karst in Kaijingde Mountain, Papua New Guinea
The karst landform of Kaijingde Mountain was formed in Quaternary, and it was formed in the process of continuous uplift. And since its formation, it is completely in natural evolution, hardly disturbed and destroyed by human society, and its original state is well preserved.
2. Comparison and evaluation of karst landforms in Yunnan Shilin.
There have been many incisive and scientific comments on the global comparative evaluation of Yunnan Stone Forest (Lunan Stone Forest) by predecessors. Here, the author extracts the comments of several world-famous karst experts.
Julia James (former President of the International Cave Federation of the University of Sydney, Australia): "I have been to areas that have been developed into tourist areas, namely Oishinohayashi, Xiaoshilin, Naigu Shilin and Qingshuitang Shilin, which have not yet been developed into tourist areas. I have been to many karst areas like Stone Forest in Australia and the world, so I can make a comprehensive evaluation of Lunan Stone Forest.
Lunan Stone Forest is a very important and successful tourist attraction. At present, the annual number of tourists reaches 6.5438+0 million. As a tourist attraction, it is of great value to the local economy. Shilin attracts most tourists with its reputation as a miracle of the world. The beauty of Oishinohayashi, Xiaoshi Stone Forest and Nai Ancient Stone Forest comes from the combination of limestone columns and sword-shaped karst. Limestone is dissolved into many rich external forms and turned into various forms of gray, with red soil and green vegetation as the background. All the above characteristics have been fully exerted. For the safety and comfort of tourists, Shilin has built steps, walkways and other facilities, which are combined with various large-scale dissolved traces, lakes, waterfalls and caves in Shilin Scenic Area. In addition, all the typical forms of micro-dissolution marks can be found in southern Shandong. With an area of 350 square kilometers, Lunan Stone Forest is by far the largest sword karst area in the world. Shilin has a complex geological history, and its various stages of evolution are displayed in the applied world heritage area. Shilin perfectly explains the interaction between microbial algae and higher plants and limestone. In this way, the following structure can be obtained: biological activities have played an important role in the formation of various forms of Shilin. Dajian karst is an extreme form of dissolution mark development. The various morphological types produced are a series of complex evolution. Similar patterns can also be found in Muru, Malaysia, Palawan, Philippines, Kaijingde Mountain in Papua New Guinea, Jinge, Madagascar and Chilago, Australia. Jiankarst in the first four areas is much older, but only a very small scale karst remains are similar to Lunan Stone Forest, and no other similar karst areas have carried out extensive basic research like Lunan Stone Forest. This is a major feature of Shilin China and international honor. All the places within the range of Lunan Stone Forest are easy to reach. It should be said that the management of Lunan Stone Forest is based on long-term scientific research results. The potential for further study of Lunan Stone Forest is infinite. The karst research center to be established in Oishinohayashi will be welcomed and supported by all karst scientists. For all tourists, primary and secondary school students and college students, Lunan Stone Forest is the most ideal place in Southeast Asia. At present, Lunan Shilin Administration has many facilities to educate tourists. The cultural activities of Lunan Stone Forest created by the Yi people here have a long history. Fortunately, the Yi people are willing to enjoy the beauty of the Stone Forest and their culture with tourists. Obviously, they strongly support Lunan Stone Forest to declare the World Natural Heritage List. The topography of Lunan Stone Forest has been quoted by many scientific papers and textbooks. They are the most complex sword karst in the world. My personal opinion is that the international karst community should use the term "stone forest" to despise its similar topographical features. Therefore, Lunan Stone Forest should be the reference point of this form in karst development.
Yuan Daoxian, an academician of China Academy of Sciences and a famous karst expert, was the chairman of the international working group of IGCP299 project "Geology, Climate, Hydrology and Karst Formation" (1990 ~ 1994) funded by UNESCO and the International Union of Geosciences. In this project, the karst in 8 countries including Turkey, China, Russian, Australian, American, Iranian, Canadian and British was compared on the spot. In addition, Japan, Yugoslavia, Thailand, Hungary, Romania, Mexico, Cuba, Brazil and other countries provided 44 comparative data for the project, saying: "From the results of IGCP299, Lunan Stone Forest is famous for its unique karst combination form, which consists of dissolved cracks, stone pillars, dissolved marks on the soil and dissolved marks under the soil. Because Lunan Stone Forest has unique geological, climatic and hydrological conditions, that is, the hard Permian limestone occurrence level; Large-scale oblique uplift since Cenozoic; Humid subtropical climate, covering and gradual erosion of Paleogene red beds and favorable hydrological conditions; As well as the continental glaciers that were not eroded in the last ice age, Lunan Stone Forest has become a unique karst landscape in the world with its deep corrosion cracks, tall stone pillars, spectacular dissolved marks on the soil and colorful dissolved marks under the soil. Karst forms similar to Stone Forest have also appeared in other parts of the world, either because of soft lithology (Southeast Asia, Central America, southern Australia), or because of lack of necessary crustal uplift (Yucatan Peninsula, southern Australia, Mexico), or because of insufficient precipitation (such as karst in many arid and semi-arid areas), or because of the scraping of continental ice sheets during the last ice age, the development time of gully dissolution marks was short (Yorkshire, England, southeastern Canada). Its type and shape are not as spectacular as Lunan Stone Forest. Although the rainfall in some places is higher than that in southern Shandong, there are bigger and deeper karst marks, and there are no other forms (such as karst in Malaysia and Papua New Guinea). Therefore, the stone forest in southern Shandong has extremely distinctive characteristics in the world, which not only has high ornamental tourism value, but also has high educational and scientific research value (such as global change and karst formation mechanism research) and the necessity of protection.