Evolución geomorfológica del conjunto volcánico subhistórico de Montaña Cascajo (Dorsal de Bilma-Abeque) en Tenerife

Abstract

Certain types of landscapes frecuently serve as empirical laboratories both in geography and in other sciences. Given its shape and distribution of structures, the Montaña Cascajo volcanic complex in Tenerife, with the historical volcanoes, constitutes one of the most interesting localities for studying the geomorphological evolution of a recently formed oceanic island. This report determines the changes of the original morphological features, evaluating the factors and processes that are causing important variations in the appearance of the eruptive complex, and the cone shapes that are generated. The detailed description of the morphology of Montaña Cascajo allows the adoption of an evolutionary model of a prehistoric volcano. In a generalized way, this model also explains the geomorphological evolution of other recent and Holocene volcanic cones in Tenerife that have been exposed to arid mountain conditions.