The Sierra Norte is not very high and its mountains have generally a rounded shape except for the occasional
karstic crags. 962 m high
Cerro de La Capitana is the highest point of the range. The
Odiel and
Murtigas are the main rivers in the area of the range. The Sierra Norte is properly a
massif that includes the subranges of
Sierra del Agua, highest point 910 m high
Pico Hamapega, the
Sierra de La Grana at the edge of the
Plains of Guadalcanal, and the
Sierra de San Miguel. The climate is less humid than in the
Sierra de Aracena further west.
Holm oaks are more common, growing in clarified forests where there are also large clearings, known locally as
dehesas. These are characteristic of the Sierra Morena landscape and are traditional pasture zones for cattle and pigs. Also typical are the
gallery forests shading the rivers of the range that provide a home to birds such as the
Spanish imperial eagle, the
cinereous vulture and the
black stork.
Cerro del Hierro (Hill of Iron) is an interesting karstic site within the range from which iron ore was formerly mined from cavities within the limestone and which has been declared a
natural monument.
Geology The geological structure of the Sierra Norte is quite complex, with rocks ranging in age from Cambrian to Permo-Triassic. It includes terrain similar to the
geology of the Appalachians, together with
granitic terrain,
tabular sheet intrusions, as well as
karstic and
pure shear.
Cambrian sedimentary strata include well-preserved
fossils of
archaeocyathids. ==Protected areas==