BeÅŸparmak Mountains

Landsat image of the Beşparmak Dağları and Lake Bafa

Bafa Lake with Heraclea on Latmos

The Beşparmak Dağları ( German Five Finger Mountains, also Batı Menteşe Dağları, in ancient times Latmos Mountains ) are a mountain range in the Turkish province of Muğla. It starts northeast of Lake Bafa at Valley of Büyük Menderes and runs south-east to east of Milas, where it merges into the Marcal Dağları. To the east lies the valley of the Çine Çayı, west of the Bafa Lake and the mountain range of İlbir Dagi. The highest elevation is the Teke Dagi, the ancient Latmos, near the eastern shore of the lake with 1332 m.

History

As evident from the rock paintings in Latmos Mountains, Anneliese Peschlow discovered in 1994, shows the area was already inhabited in the Chalcolithic. In ancient times, the mountain belonged to the region of Caria. By the fourth century AD, it was still at sea, as the current Bafa Lake was connected as Latmischer Gulf to the Aegean Sea. Only then the bay by the deposits of the meander ( Büyük Menderes ) was cut off from the open sea. The ancient city Heraclea on Latmos at the eastern end of Lake Bafa was thus in the fourth century BC, the frontier fort on the northern frontier of the dominion of Halicarnassus under King Mouse Solos In Latmos is located at 700 m altitude, the Carian sanctuary Labraunda, which also was one of Halicarnassus, on the southwestern slope of the site Euromos. Strabo mentions the mountain and the city of Heraclea in his Geographika. In his view, it is the mountain that is mentioned in Homer's Iliad as Φθειρῶν ὄρος (Mount of Phthirer, pine or spruce mountain Kernberg, depending on the translation ). In Byzantine times, the mountains were a refuge for Christian monks and hermits, of which the Stylos monastery bears witness, where the end of the 13th century, the last monks in vain resisted the Seljuks. Then the mountains was leaving until Turkish nomads began to let their herds graze here.

Geology

Comprised of augen gneiss mountains Towering in wave form and battlements, which led to the Turkish name. Among the occurring forms are also caves, which were used as dwellings of hermits, and woolsack weathering. The weathering of the gneiss formed quartz sand, which is washed down to the lake and are deposited there in fine-grained quartz sand dunes.

Flora and Fauna

The Beşparmak Dağları have only sparse vegetation. It consists largely of highly dogged by goats low bushes of Kermes oak. At higher altitudes remains of pine forests are found as well as individual pines from which pine seeds are obtained. In few, somewhat flatter places the residents try the cultivation of olive trees.

In the ruins, by the lake in the olive groves are found Hardune, on the sparsely vegetated soils, the snake eyes lizard ( Orphisops elegans) and occurring only in Turkey Örtzensche lizard. At higher altitudes, porcupines occur and there is a small population of brown bears.