Santa Rita Mountains

Santa Rita Mountains
Santa Rita Mountains
	View of the northern end of the Santa Ritas from the Santa Rita Experimental Range.
Highest point
Peak	Mount Wrightson
Elevation	9,453 ft (2,881 m)
Coordinates	Coordinates: 31°43′23″N 110°52′49″W / 31.72306°N 110.88028°W
Geography
	Santa Rita Mountains Pima and Santa Cruz County, Arizona
Country	United States
State	Arizona
Region	Sonoran Desert
District	Tucson, AZ
Topo map	USGS Helvetia, AZ

The Santa Rita Mountains (O'odham: To:wa Kuswo Doʼag), located about 65 km (40 mi) southeast of Tucson, Arizona, extend 42 km (26 mi) from north to south, then trending southeast. They merge again southeastwards into the Patagonia Mountains, trending northwest by southeast. The highest point in the range, and the highest point in the Tucson area, is Mount Wrightson, with an elevation of 9,453 feet (2,881 m), The range contains Madera Canyon, one of the world's premier birding areas. The Smithsonian Institution's Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory is located on Mount Hopkins. The range is one of the Madrean sky islands.

The Santa Rita Mountains are mostly within the Coronado National Forest. Prior to 1908 they were the principal component of Santa Rita National Forest, which was combined with other small forest tracts to form Coronado. Much of the range lies within the Mt. Wrightson Wilderness, managed by the Coronado National Forest. The Santa Rita Mountains were severely burned in July 2005 in the Florida Fire.

Other mountain ranges surrounding the Tucson valley include the Santa Catalina Mountains, the Rincon Mountains, the Tucson Mountains, and the Tortolita Mountains.

Rosemont mine[]

A large porphyry copper deposit has been identified near the old Helvetia mining district on the north flank of the range. The proposed Rosemont mine would be an open pit operation located in the Santa Ritas about two miles west of mile marker 44 on Arizona State Route 83.^[1]

America's only known wild jaguar[]

The Santa Rita Mountains are the home range of "El Jefe," an adult male jaguar first identified in 2011. This has raised conservation concerns about proposed open pit copper mining.^[2]^[3]

Gallery[]

Helvetia, Arizona, in 1909.
View of the Santa Ritas from the Catalina Mountains.
Mount Wrightson from Madera Canyon in 2012.
The San Rafael Valley with the Santa Ritas in the background.
A rainbow and the Santa Ritas.
The southern end of the Santa Ritas from Sahuarita, Arizona.
Overlooking Green Valley, Arizona from the Santa Rita mountains.

The eastern and southern Santa Rita Mountains photographed from the summit of Jack Mountain. Mount Wrightson, the peak left of center, is the highest point in the range.

References[]

External links[]

[1] Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Rosemont Copper Project

[2] ttp://thewildlife.wbur.org/2016/02/09/el-jefe-the-uss-only-wild-jaguar-can-we-keep-him/

[3] ttp://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/return-great-american-jaguar-180960443/?no-ist

[1]

[2]

[3]

show v t Mountains of Arizona
Black Hills (Yavapai County)	Mingus Mountain
Black Mountains	Boundary Cone Fortification Hill Mount Wilson
Bradshaw Mountains	Mount Union
Castle Dome Mountains	Castle Dome
Cerbat Mountains	Mount Tipton
Chiricahua Mountains	Chiricahua Peak
Chuska Mountains	Roof Butte
Dragoon Mountains	Mount Glenn
Hieroglyphic Mountains	White Picacho
Huachuca Mountains	Carr Peak Miller Peak
Hualapai Mountains	Aubrey Peak Hualapai Peak
Little Ajo Mountains	Ajo Peak
Little Dragoon Mountains	Lime Peak Mae West Peaks
Mazatzal Mountains	Four Peaks Mount Ord
McDowell Mountains	East End McDowell Peak Mount McDowell Thompson Peak
Mule Mountains	Mount Ballard
Phoenix Mountains	Camelback Mountain Mummy Mountain Piestewa Peak South Mountains Sunnyslope Mountain
Pinal Mountains	Pinal Peak
Pinaleño Mountains	Mount Graham
Plomosa Mountains	Ibex Peak
Quinlan Mountains	Kitt Peak
Rincon Mountains	Mica Mountain
San Francisco Peaks	Agassiz Peak Doyle Peak Fremont Peak
San Francisco Volcanic Field	Black Bottom Crater Double Crater Humphreys Peak Kendrick Peak Mount Elden O'Leary Peak Roden Crater S P Crater Strawberry Crater Sunset Crater
Santa Catalina Mountains	Mount Bigelow Mount Lemmon Pusch Ridge Thimble Peak
Santa Rita Mountains	Mount Hopkins Mount Wrightson
Santa Teresa Mountains	Mount Turnbull
Sierra Ancha	Mistake Peak
Sierra Prieta	Granite Mountain
Superstition Mountains	Superstition Mountain Weavers Needle
Tank Mountains	Black Dome
Tucson Mountains	Sentinel Peak Tumamoc Hill
Whetstone Mountains	Apache Peak
White Mountains	Black Mesa (Navajo County) Escudilla Mountain Mount Baldy
Others	Agathla Peak Agua Caliente Mountains Agua Dulce Mountains Antelope Hill Aquarius Mountains Artillery Mountains Atascosa Mountains Aubrey Hills Baboquivari Peak Balakai Mesa Beaver Dam Mountains Belmont Mountains Bill Williams Mountain Bitsihuitsos Butte Black Hills (Greenlee County) Black Mesa (Apache-Navajo Counties) Black Mesa (Warm Springs) Black Mountain (Maricopa County) Black Mountain (Pima County) Blackjack Mountains Bryan Mountains Buckskin Mountain (Arizona-Utah) Buckskin Mountains (La Paz County) Bush Head Cabeza Prieta Mountains Canelo Hills Carrizo Mountains Cerro Colorado Mountains Chocolate Mountains Copper Mountains Coyote Mountains Date Creek Mountains Dome Rock Mountains Dos Cabezas Mountains Etoi Ki Excalibur Galiuro Mountains Gavilan Peak Gila Bend Mountains Gila Mountains (Graham County) Gila Mountains (Yuma County) Goldfield Mountains Grand Wash Cliffs Granite Mountains Granite Wash Mountains Growler Mountains Gu Achi Peak Guadalupe Mountains Harcuvar Mountains Harquahala Mountains House Mountain Hunts Mesa Isis Temple John the Baptist Mountains Juniper Mesa Kaibab Plateau Kofa Mountains Laguna Mountains Las Guijas Mountains Lime Mountain (Maricopa County} Little Harquahala Mountains Little Rincon Mountains Lukachukai Mountains Madrean Sky Islands Mescal Mountains Mineral Mountains Moccasin Mountains Mohave Mountains Mohawk Mountains Mount Trumbull Muggins Mountains Mustang Mountains Navajo Mountain The Needles New River Mountains New Water Mountains Newton Butte Painted Rock Mountains Pajarito Mountains Patagonia Mountains Peacock Mountains Picacho Peak Picketpost Mountain Pinnacle Peak Poachie Range Poston Butte Rawhide Mountains Sacaton Mountains San Luis Mountains Santa Maria Mountains Sevenmile Mountains Sierra San Antonio Sierra Estrella Sierra Madre Occidental Sierra Pinta Silver Bell Mountains Squaw Tits Sugarloaf Mountain Sunset Mountains Swisshelm Mountains Tempe Butte Temple Butte Tinajas Altas Mountains Tordillo Mountain Tortolita Mountains Trigo Mountains Tule Mountains Tumacacori Mountains Virgin Mountains Vulcan's Throne Vulture Mountains Waterman Mountains Weaver Mountains West Silver Bell Mountains White Tank Mountains Wickenburg Mountains

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Santa Rita Mountains

Contents

Rosemont mine[]

America's only known wild jaguar[]

Gallery[]

See also[]

References[]

External links[]