Alps

The Alps is the collective name for one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria in the east, Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany, through to France in the west. The highest mountain in the Alps is the Mont Blanc at 4808 meters on the French-Italian border.

The European Alps from space,
as seen in May 2002.
Click on the picture for a large annotated version

Contents

Western Alps

Maritime Alps - Cottian Alps - Dauphine Alps - Graian Alps - Pennine Alps

Central Alps

Swiss Alps, including North-Eastern Swiss Alps - Bernese Oberland - Lepontine Alps - Todi Range - Bernina Alps - Albula Range - Silvretta and Rätikon Ranges

Eastern Alps

The Eastern Alps are the part of the Alps east of the line between Lake Constance along the Rhine to Lake Como. They are lower and less rough than the Western Alps, with lower passes.

The highest peak in the Eastern Alps is Piz Bernina, at 4052 m the only peak above 4000 meters.

Parts of the Eastern Alps are located in the following countries:

Germany; highest peak: Zugspitze - (Wetterstein Mountains);,
Italy; highest peak: Ortler (Ortler Alps);
Liechtenstein; highest peak: Grauspitz (Rätikon);
Austria; highest peak: Großglockner (High Tauern);
Slovenia; highest peak: Triglav (Julian Alps);
Switzerland; highest peak: Piz Bernina - (Bernina Alps).

The Eastern Alps are commonly subdivided into the Northern Limestone Alps, the Central Eastern Alps and the Southern Limestone Alps, with reflects the different geological composition of the more central parts of the Alps and the groups at its fringe. The border between the Central Alps and the Southern Limestone Alps is the so-called Periadriatic Seam. The Northern Limestone Alps are separated from the Central Alps by the Grauwacken Zone.

Groups of the Eastern Alps:

Groups of the Northern Limestone Alps

Northern Limestone Alps (from East to West):
- Wienerwald (1)
- Gutenstein Alps (2)
- Rax and Schneeberg (3)
- Mürzsteg Alps (Schneealpe)(4)
- Türnitz Alps (5)
- Ybbstal Alps (6)
- Hochschwab (7)
- Ennstal Alps (including Gesäuse) (8)
- Upper Austrian Foothills (9)
- Dead Mountains (10)
- Dachstein (11)
- Alps of the Salzkammergut (12)
- Tennengebirge (13)
- Berchtesgaden Alps (14)
- Lofer Stone Mountains and Leogang Stone Mountains (15)
- Chiemgau Alps (16)
- Kaisergebirge (17)
- Rofangebirge, Brandenberg Alps (18)
- Bavarian Foothills (Mangfall Mountains, Ester Mountaints etc) (19)
- Karwendel (20)
- Wetterstein Mountains (21)
- Ammergau Alps (22)
- Allgäu Alps (23)
- Lechtal Alps (24)
- Lechquellengebirge (25)
- Bregenzerwald (26) (on groups 13-26 also see The Alps of Bavaria, the Vorarlberg, and Salzburg)

Groups of the Central Eastern Alps

Central Eastern Alps (from East to West):
- Mountains east of the Mura (including Hochwechsel, Fischbach Alps, Grazer Bergland (1)
- Laventtal Alps (2)
- Low Tauern (3)
- Nock Mountains (4)
- High Tauern (5)
- Kitzbühel Alps (6)
- Zillertal Alps (7)
- Tux Alps (8)
- Stubai Alps (9)
- Sarntal Alps (10)
- Ötztal Alps (11) (on 6-11 also see Tirolean Alps; Ortler, Oetzthal and Stubai Ranges)
- Samnaun Alps (12)
- Verwall Alps (13)
- Rätikon (14)
- Silvretta (15)
- Sesvenna Alps (16)
- Albula Alps (17)
- Plessur Alps(18)
- Oberhalbstein Alps (19)
- Livigno Alps(20)
- Bernina Alps (21)
- Bergamo Alps (22)

Groups of the Southern Limestone Alps

Southern Limestone Alps: (from East to West)
- Pohorje (German Bachergebirge) (1)
- Kamnik Alps, Savinja Alps (2)
- Karavanke (3)
- Julian Alps (4)
- Gailtal Alps (5)
- Carnic Alps (6)
- Southern Carnic Alps (7) (on 1-7 also see South-Eastern Alps)
- Dolomites (8)
- Fiemme Alps (9)
- Vizentine Alps (10)
- Nonsberg Alps (11)
- Brenta(12)
- Mountains around Lake Garda (13)
- Ortler Alps (14)
- Adamello-Presanella Alps (15)
- Sobretta-Gavia-Gruppe (16) (on 12-13 and 14-16 also see Lombard Alps)

Flora

Many writers take the growth of grain as the characteristic of the mountain region; but so many varieties of all the common species are in cultivation, and these have such different climatal requirements, that they do not afford a factory criterion.

A more natural limit is afforded by the presence of the chief deciduous trees -- oak, beech, ash and sycamore maple. These do not reach exactly to the same elevation, nor are they often found growing together; but their upper limit corresponds accurately enough to the change from a temperate to a colder climate that is further proved by a change in the wild herbaceous vegetation. This limit usually lies about 1200 m above the sea on the north side of the Alps, but on the southern slopes it often rises to 1500 m, sometimes even to 1700 m.

It must not be supposed that this region is always marked by the presence of the characteristic trees. The interference of man has in many districts almost extirpated them, and, excepting the beech forests of the Austrian Alps, a considerable wood of deciduous trees is scarcely anywhere to be found. In many districts where such woods once existed, their place has been occupied by the Scots pine and Norway spruce, which suffer less from the ravages of goats, the worst enemies of tree vegetation. The mean annual temperature of this region differs little from that of the British Islands; but the climatal conditions are widely different. Here snow usually lies for several months, till it gives place to a spring and summer considerably warmer than the average of British seasons.