The Sierra de Los Tuxtlas (Tuxtlas Mountains) are a volcanic belt and mountain range along the southeastern Veracruz Gulf coast in southcentral Mexico. Peaks in this range include Volcano Santa Marta and Volcano San Martín Tuxtla, both rising above 1700 meters. San Martín Tuxtla is the only recently-active volcano in the belt, erupting in 1664 and again in May 1793. It is a broad alkaline shield volcano with a one kilometer wide summit. Hundreds of smaller cinder cones are prevalent throughout the Sierra.
Other, extinct volcanoes include San Martin Pajapan (1,160 meters) and Cerro El Vigia (800 meters).
The Sierra de Los Tuxtlas volcanoes are an insular anomaly. The volcanoes are separated from the nearest volcano in the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt to the west by about 150 miles (250 km), and from the Central American Volcanic Belt to the southeast by almost 200 miles (330 km).
These mountains were used as a basalt source for the Olmecs during the early formative period. Basalt was transported by raft through a network of rivers and then made into monuments including colossal heads.[1]
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The upper flanks of the San Martin Tuxtla and Santa Marta volcanoes are covered with a neotropical rainforest, while the lower portions are covered with stunted pastures. The Sierra de Los Tuxtlas includes all of the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve .