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Himalayas: Difference between revisions
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| map_caption = Mount Everest and surrounding peaks as seen from the north-northwest over the Tibetan Plateau. Four eight-thousanders can be seen, Makalu (8,462 m), Everest (8,848 m), Cho Oyu (8,201 m), and Lhotse (8,516 m). | | map_caption = Mount Everest and surrounding peaks as seen from the north-northwest over the Tibetan Plateau. Four eight-thousanders can be seen, Makalu (8,462 m), Everest (8,848 m), Cho Oyu (8,201 m), and Lhotse (8,516 m). | ||
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The '''Himalayas''', or '''Himalaya''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|h|ɪ|m|ə|ˈ|l|eɪ|.|ə|,_|h|ɪ|ˈ|m|ɑː|l|ə|j|ə}}; {{IPA-sa|ɦɪmaːlɐjɐ|lang}}; {{etymology|sa|{{IAST|himá}}|snow, frost||{{IAST|ā-laya}}|dwelling, abode}}),<ref name=OED-Himalayan>{{cite OED|Himalayan |access-date=2021-08-05 |quote=Etymology: < ''Himālaya'' (Sanskrit < ''hima'' snow + ''ālaya'' dwelling, abode) + -an suffix)}}</ref> is a [[mountain range]] in Asia, separating the [[ | The '''Himalayas''', or '''Himalaya''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|h|ɪ|m|ə|ˈ|l|eɪ|.|ə|,_|h|ɪ|ˈ|m|ɑː|l|ə|j|ə}}; {{IPA-sa|ɦɪmaːlɐjɐ|lang}}; {{etymology|sa|{{IAST|himá}}|snow, frost||{{IAST|ā-laya}}|dwelling, abode}}),<ref name=OED-Himalayan>{{cite OED|Himalayan |access-date=2021-08-05 |quote=Etymology: < ''Himālaya'' (Sanskrit < ''hima'' snow + ''ālaya'' dwelling, abode) + -an suffix)}}</ref> is a [[mountain range]] in Asia, separating the [[plain]]s of the [[Indian subcontinent]] from the [[Tibetan Plateau]]. The range has some of the [[Earth]]'s highest peaks, including the very highest, [[Mount Everest]]; over [[list of highest mountains on Earth|100 peaks]] exceeding elevations of {{Convert|7200|m|abbr=on}} above sea level lie in the Himalayas. | ||
The Himalayas abut or cross [[Himalayan states|five countries]]: [[Bhutan]], [[India]], [[Nepal]], [[China]], and [[Pakistan]]. The sovereignty of the range in the [[Kashmir]] region is disputed among India, Pakistan, and China.<ref name=bishop-britannica>{{cite web|last=Bishop|first=Barry|author-link=Barry Bishop (mountaineer)|title=Himalayas (mountains, Asia)|publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/266037/Himalayas|access-date=30 July 2016}}</ref> The Himalayan range is bordered on the northwest by the [[Karakoram]] and [[Hindu Kush]] ranges, on the north by the Tibetan Plateau, and on the south by the [[Indo-Gangetic Plain]]. Some of the world's major [[river]]s, the [[Indus River|Indus]], the [[Ganges river|Ganges]], and the [[Yarlung Tsangpo River|Tsangpo]]–[[Brahmaputra River|Brahmaputra]], rise in the vicinity of the Himalayas, and their combined [[drainage basin]] is home to some 600 million people; 53 million people live in the Himalayas.<ref name="DimriBookhagen2019">{{cite book|author1=A.P. Dimri|author2=B. Bookhagen|author3=M. Stoffel|author4=T. Yasunari|title=Himalayan Weather and Climate and their Impact on the Environment|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7Ea9DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA380|date=8 November 2019|publisher=Springer Nature|isbn=978-3-030-29684-1|page=380}}</ref> The Himalayas have profoundly shaped the cultures of [[South Asia]] and [[Tibet]]. Many Himalayan peaks are sacred in [[Hinduism]] and [[Buddhism]]. The summits of several—[[Kangchenjunga]] (from the Indian side), [[Gangkhar Puensum]], [[Machapuchare]], [[Nanda Devi]], and [[Kailas]] in the Tibetan [[Transhimalaya]]—are off-limits to climbers. | The Himalayas abut or cross [[Himalayan states|five countries]]: [[Bhutan]], [[India]], [[Nepal]], [[China]], and [[Pakistan]]. The sovereignty of the range in the [[Kashmir]] region is disputed among India, Pakistan, and China.<ref name=bishop-britannica>{{cite web|last=Bishop|first=Barry|author-link=Barry Bishop (mountaineer)|title=Himalayas (mountains, Asia)|publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/266037/Himalayas|access-date=30 July 2016}}</ref> The Himalayan range is bordered on the northwest by the [[Karakoram]] and [[Hindu Kush]] ranges, on the north by the Tibetan Plateau, and on the south by the [[Indo-Gangetic Plain]]. Some of the world's major [[river]]s, the [[Indus River|Indus]], the [[Ganges river|Ganges]], and the [[Yarlung Tsangpo River|Tsangpo]]–[[Brahmaputra River|Brahmaputra]], rise in the vicinity of the Himalayas, and their combined [[drainage basin]] is home to some 600 million people; 53 million people live in the Himalayas.<ref name="DimriBookhagen2019">{{cite book|author1=A.P. Dimri|author2=B. Bookhagen|author3=M. Stoffel|author4=T. Yasunari|title=Himalayan Weather and Climate and their Impact on the Environment|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7Ea9DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA380|date=8 November 2019|publisher=Springer Nature|isbn=978-3-030-29684-1|page=380}}</ref> The Himalayas have profoundly shaped the cultures of [[South Asia]] and [[Tibet]]. Many Himalayan peaks are sacred in [[Hinduism]] and [[Buddhism]]. The summits of several—[[Kangchenjunga]] (from the Indian side), [[Gangkhar Puensum]], [[Machapuchare]], [[Nanda Devi]], and [[Kailas]] in the Tibetan [[Transhimalaya]]—are off-limits to climbers. | ||
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The flora and fauna of the Himalayas vary with climate, rainfall, altitude, and soils. The climate ranges from tropical at the base of the mountains to permanent ice and snow at the highest elevations. The amount of yearly rainfall increases from west to east along the southern front of the range. This diversity of altitude, rainfall, and soil conditions, combined with the very high snow line, supports a variety of distinct plant and animal communities.<ref name="O'Neill_2019"/> The extremes of high altitude (low atmospheric pressure), combined with extreme cold, favor [[extremophile]] organisms.<ref>{{cite web|first=C. Michael|last=Hogan|year=2010|url=https://editors.eol.org/eoearth/wiki/Extremophiles|title=Extremophile|editor1-first=E.|editor1-last=Monosson |website=[[Encyclopedia of Earth]]|publisher=National Council for Science and the Environment|location=Washington, DC}}</ref | The flora and fauna of the Himalayas vary with climate, rainfall, altitude, and soils. The climate ranges from tropical at the base of the mountains to permanent ice and snow at the highest elevations. The amount of yearly rainfall increases from west to east along the southern front of the range. This diversity of altitude, rainfall, and soil conditions, combined with the very high snow line, supports a variety of distinct plant and animal communities.<ref name="O'Neill_2019"/> The extremes of high altitude (low atmospheric pressure), combined with extreme cold, favor [[extremophile]] organisms.<ref name="oneill_khecheopalri"/><ref>{{cite web|first=C. Michael|last=Hogan|year=2010|url=https://editors.eol.org/eoearth/wiki/Extremophiles|title=Extremophile|editor1-first=E.|editor1-last=Monosson |website=[[Encyclopedia of Earth]]|publisher=National Council for Science and the Environment|location=Washington, DC}}</ref> | ||
At high altitudes, the elusive and previously endangered [[snow leopard]] is the main predator. Its prey includes members of the goat family grazing on the alpine pastures and living on the rocky terrain, notably the endemic [[bharal]] or Himalayan blue sheep. The [[Himalayan musk deer]] is also found at high altitudes. Hunted for its musk, it is now rare and endangered. Other endemic or near-endemic herbivores include the [[Himalayan tahr]], the [[takin]], the [[Himalayan serow]], and the [[Himalayan goral]]. The critically endangered [[Himalayan brown bear|Himalayan]] subspecies of the [[brown bear]] is found sporadically across the range, as is the [[Asian black bear]]. In the mountainous mixed deciduous and conifer forests of the eastern Himalayas, [[Red panda]] feed in the dense understories of bamboo. Lower down, the forests of the foothills are inhabited by several different primates, including the endangered [[Gee's golden langur]] and the [[Kashmir gray langur]], with highly restricted ranges in the east and west of the Himalayas, respectively.<ref name="oneill_khecheopalri"/> | At high altitudes, the elusive and previously endangered [[snow leopard]] is the main predator. Its prey includes members of the goat family grazing on the alpine pastures and living on the rocky terrain, notably the endemic [[bharal]] or Himalayan blue sheep. The [[Himalayan musk deer]] is also found at high altitudes. Hunted for its musk, it is now rare and endangered. Other endemic or near-endemic herbivores include the [[Himalayan tahr]], the [[takin]], the [[Himalayan serow]], and the [[Himalayan goral]]. The critically endangered [[Himalayan brown bear|Himalayan]] subspecies of the [[brown bear]] is found sporadically across the range, as is the [[Asian black bear]]. In the mountainous mixed deciduous and conifer forests of the eastern Himalayas, [[Red panda]] feed in the dense understories of bamboo. Lower down, the forests of the foothills are inhabited by several different primates, including the endangered [[Gee's golden langur]] and the [[Kashmir gray langur]], with highly restricted ranges in the east and west of the Himalayas, respectively.<ref name="oneill_khecheopalri"/> | ||