El Cerro del Aripo , at 940 metres (3,084 ft), is the highest point in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago . It is part of the Aripo Massif and is located in the Northern Range on the island of Trinidad , northeast of the town of Arima .
25-533: Fyzabad is a town in southwestern Trinidad , 13 km (8.1 mi) south of San Fernando , west of Siparia and northeast of Point Fortin . It is named after the town of Faizabad in India . Colloquially it is known as "Fyzo" by many people. Fyzabad was founded by Rev. Kenneth J. Grant , a Presbyterian missionary in Trinidad in 1871. The purpose of the settlement was to separate Christian Indians from
50-491: A " Dougla " is a person of African and East Indian descent who may identify as being part of either group. There are multiple festivals on Trinidad, featuring the music of the Caribbean and the steelpan (which originated on Trinidad and is the country's national instrument); These festivals include the multi-national, pre-Lenten Carnivál , J'ouvert , and Panorama , the national steelpan competition. In addition to
75-474: A sailor to climb up to the main top and sighted a cluster of three peaks, therefore Columbus named the island Trinidad from the three peaks and Columbus's special devotion to the Trinity. Caribs and Arawaks lived in Trinidad long before Christopher Columbus encountered the islands on his third voyage on 31 July 1498. The island remained Spanish until 1797, but it was settled mostly by French colonists from
100-547: Is a subsidence basin formed between the Caribbean and South American plates , and is bounded on the north by the coast ranges of Venezuela and the Northern Range of Trinidad, and bounded on the south by the Guayana Shield . This Guayana shield supplied fine-grained clastic sediments , which with the subsidence, formed a regional negative gravity anomaly and growth faults . Oil and gas discoveries from
125-628: Is also the fifth largest in the West Indies . The original name for the island in the Arawaks' language was Iëre which meant "Land of the Hummingbird". Christopher Columbus renamed it La Isla de la Trinidad ('The Island of the Trinity '), fulfilling a vow he had made before setting out on his third voyage. This has since been shortened to Trinidad . Indo-Trinidadians called
150-464: Is diversified, based to a large extent on oil and natural gas . It is one of the leading gas-based export centers in the world, being one of the top five exporters of liquefied natural gas and the largest onshore natural gas well was recently discovered in southern Trinidad. This has allowed Trinidad to capitalize on the biggest mineral reserves within its territories. It is an oil-rich country and stable economically. The Venezuela Tertiary Basin
175-464: Is located in the Northern Range on the island, northeast of the town of Arima . As of the 2011 Trinidad and Tobago Census, the population was 35.43% Indian , 34.22% African , 7.66% mixed African and East Indian, and 15.16% mixed race . Venezuela has also had a great impact on Trinidad's culture, such as introducing the music style parang to the island. Many groups overlap. For example,
200-690: Is marked by a fault extending from the El Pilar Fault System in Venezuela. South of this fault is the Northern Basin, or Caroni Syncline , consisting of Tertiary sedimentary rocks unconformably overlying Jurassic and Cretaceous sedimentary rocks. South of this basin is the Central Range, consisting of Upper Tertiary sedimentary rocks lying unconformably atop Lower Eocene and Paleocene rocks. South of this range
225-587: Is the Naparima Plain , a thrust belt of Oligocene and Lower Tertiary beds. Hydrocarbon bearing anticlines include those associated with Pitch Lake , Forest Reserve, Point Fortin, Penal, Barrackpore, and Balata Fields. The Los Bajos Fault is a wrench fault , with Lower Pliocene displacement of 6.51 miles, bordered on the north by the Siparia syncline, and on the south by the Erin syncline. Finally,
250-770: The French Caribbean , especially Martinique . In 1889 the two islands became a single British crown colony . Trinidad and Tobago was granted self-governance in 1958 and independence from the United Kingdom in August 1962, and it became a republic in September 1976. Major landforms include the hills of the Northern , Central and Southern Ranges (Dinah ranges), the Caroni , Nariva and Oropouche Swamps, and
275-532: The Pliocene Moruga Group include Teak (1968), Samaan (1971), Poui (1972) and Galeota. These fields are mainly faulted anticline traps producing from depths of 1.2 to 4.2 km (0.75 to 2.61 mi) subsea, with Teak possessing a hydrocarbon column almost 1 km (0.62 mi) thick. The Northern Range is an Upper Jurassic - Lower Cretaceous range of metamorphic rocks striking east and dipping south. The range's southern boundary
SECTION 10
#1732802147611300-887: The Southern Range consists of anticlinal folds, including the Rock Dome-Herrera anticline and the Moruga-West Field. East of this Rock Dome are en echelon folds containing the Lizard Springs Field. South of these folds is another fold trend containing the Moruga-East, Guayaguayare, Beach, and Galeota Fields. South of the Morne Diablo-Quinam Erin Field westward is a strongly folded anticline associated with shale diapirism , which extends west southwestward to
325-618: The Temple in the Sea . The island of Trinidad has a rich biodiversity. The fauna is overwhelmingly of South American origin. There are about 100 species of mammals including the Guyanese red howler monkey, the collared peccary , the red brocket deer , the ocelot and about 70 species of bats . There are over 400 species of birds including the endemic Trinidad piping-guan . Reptiles are well represented, with about 92 recorded species including
350-520: The 1980s, coupled with declining onshore oil production, led to a decline in the town of Fyzabad. Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago . The island lies 11 km (6.8 mi) off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in the West Indies . With an area of 4,768 km (1,841 sq mi), it
375-603: The Aripo Massif form the headwaters of the Caroni River 's largest tributaries. The Guanapo river valley features interesting rock gorges associated with these fast flowing streams. The southern slopes and valleys below the Aripo Massif host a number of caves including the Aripo Cave . The Aripo Cave is home to a large oilbird colony, and features stunning stalactite and stalagmite formations. El Cerro del Aripo
400-455: The Caroni and Naparima Plains. Major river systems include the Caroni , North and South Oropouche and Ortoire Rivers . There are many other natural landforms such as beaches and waterfalls. Trinidad has two seasons per the calendar year: the rainy season and the dry season. El Cerro del Aripo , at 940 metres (3,084 ft), is the highest point in Trinidad. It is part of the Aripo Massif and
425-738: The Pedernales Field in southeast Venezuela. The northeast portion of the Southern Range separates into a northern trend containing the Lizard Springs, Navette, and Mayaro Fields, while the southern trend contains the Beach Field. Trinidad is considered one of the best places in the world to catch Atlantic tarpon . El Cerro del Aripo El Cerro del Aripo lies on the border of the St. George and St.Andrew Counties in
450-564: The biodiverse Northern Range . Unlike many of Trinidad's mountain peaks, El Cerro del Aripo has a flat summit from which no views are available. Its climate is subtropical. Due to constant fog and cloud cover, temperature may decrease significantly at night compared to the lowlands, and the orographic influence of the Northern Range produces rainfall in the region that is the highest in the country, possibly exceeding 3500 mm per year. These climate factors of high rainfall, humidity (as fog and cloud), relatively lower temperatures and high winds permit
475-488: The island चीनीदत्त ( Devanagari script ) , 𑂒𑂲𑂢𑂲𑂠𑂞𑂹𑂞 ( Kaithi script ) , چینی دت ( Perso-Arabic script ) , Chinidat or Chinidad in Trinidadian Hindustani which translated to the land of sugar. The usage of the term goes back to the 19th century when recruiters from India would call the island Chinidat as a way of luring workers into indentureship. On Tuesday, 31 July, 1498 Columbus sent
500-471: The largest species of snake in the world, the green anaconda , the spectacled caiman , and one of the largest lizards in the Americas, the green iguana . Trinidad is also the largest leatherback turtle nesting site in the western hemisphere; they nest on Trinidad's eastern and northern beaches. There are 37 recorded frog species, including the tiny El Tucuche golden tree frog , Trinidad poison frog , and
525-419: The more widespread huge cane toad . About 43 species of freshwater fish are known from Trinidad, including the well known guppy . It is estimated that there are at least 80,000 arthropods, and at least 600 species of butterflies . The William Beebe Tropical Research Station (founded by William Beebe ), also known as Simla, lies 8 kilometres (5 mi) north of Arima . The economy of Trinidad and Tobago
SECTION 20
#1732802147611550-571: The persistence of Elfin woodland and cloud forest at the summit, and tropical montane forest on the slopes and upper valleys below. El Cerro del Aripo is home to the golden treefrog , only found in the highest peaks in Trinidad and the Paria Peninsula, Venezuela . The constant cloud/fog cover and lower temperatures associated with the region's high elevation and that support Cloud Forest or Elfin Woodland are also factors important to
575-508: The survival of the elusive frog. It inhabits a type of water-collecting epiphytic bromeliad found at these elevations. Also restricted to the relatively cooler and wetter tropical cloud and montane forests of Cerro del Aripo and other higher reaches of the Northern Range is the endemic so-called Luminous Lizard Riama shrevei . The mountain lies above the Heights of Aripo Village and Aripo and Guanapo river valleys. Springs that emanate from
600-565: The traditional Christian holidays and official public days (such as Boxing Day , Christmas , Easter Sunday, Easter Monday , Emancipation Day , Good Friday , Independence Day , Labour Day , New Year's Day , and Republic Day ) in Trinidad, the island nation also celebrates a significant percentage of its population's Indian ancestry (of both Hindu and Muslim backgrounds), with officially-recognised holidays such as Divali , Eid al-Fitr and Indian Arrival Day . Sites of cultural or religious significance include Mount Saint Benedict and
625-451: The unconverted Hindu and Muslim populations. The town later grew with the discovery of oil in the area in 1917, and attracted a large number of immigrants from Grenada and other Lesser Antillean islands. In 1937 Fyzabad was the centre of labour unrest, led by T.U.B. Butler which is considered the birth of the Labour movement in Trinidad and Tobago. The collapse of oil prices in
#610389