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49-818: In the northwest the Iller-Lech Plateau borders on the Swabian Jura (unit D60 on the map) and, in the extreme northeast, on the Franconian Jura (unit D61 on the map). The boundary with these two natural regions is roughly formed by the course of the river Danube . In the east the Iller-Lech Plateau borders on the Lower Bavarian Upland and Isar-Inn Gravel Plateaus (unit D65 on the map). North of Augsburg its eastern boundary runs roughly parallel to state road 2035 (Augsburg- Pöttmes - Neuburg an der Donau ), south of Augsburg east of

98-487: A "luxury outlet town", with people from all over Europe coming to buy expensive clothes cheaper). From this, machine building and advanced engineering developed. With the invention of cars and the founding of Daimler-Benz nearby, the car industry and later also electronics and computer industries developed. The " Neckar-Alb " region is the third largest industrial zone in Germany, and the most stable. The best known company

147-474: A conveyor or dredged out if the pit fills with water. It is then separated by particle size, crushed, and washed in preparation for use. Washing removes unwanted small particulate matter such as clay, silt, and sand, and is also a safety measure for dust control. A major direct use of the aggregates produces at gravel pits is road construction. Road structure typically includes pavement and multiple sub-layers of aggregates of increasing sizes with depth beneath

196-511: A long time, it was often stagnant. Thus disinfection via alcohol was very popular: "Most" ( cider ) was mixed with water and even given to babies. A modern water supply system (outstanding for its time) was built in the late 1880s, which eased the situation. Locals in the areas speak the distinct German dialect known as Swabian German , which varies even throughout the Jura and is difficult to understand for speakers of Standard German. The dialect at

245-603: A proper noun referring more or less exclusively to the Swabian and the Franconian Jura ( German : Fränkische Alb ) areas however, and as such has no direct translation into most other languages. It is perhaps for this reason that Schwäbische Alb has sometimes been translated into English as 'Swabian Alps', thus avoiding the lesser-known name Jura . However, the area is not part of the Alps (despite its proximity), nor

294-476: A stronger Fasnet tradition. A Swabian Fasnet celebration in any case has little or nothing in common with the simultaneous celebrations along the Middle Rhein, which are well known across Germany because they are televised every year. Swabians generally are expected to go to work as normal on Rose Monday and Fat Tuesday, unlike their neighbors to the northwest. Since raising crops was not easy, raising sheep

343-467: A water bird, and two statues of a lion man all of surprising quality and all more than 30,000 years old. The oldest known musical instruments have been found here, too: flutes made from the bones of swans and griffon vultures, some 35,000 years old, and in 2004 a flute carved from the tusk of a mammoth dating from the Ice Age, around 37,000 years ago, and the oldest representation of

392-556: Is also often the case that, while in one town a strong tradition of celebrating Fasnet has survived, the neighboring town will have almost no tradition. This is in many instances linked to the after-effects of the Protestant Reformation and the later influence of the Calvinistic Pietists, who more or less strictly opposed such frivolous - even heathen - behaviour. Catholic regions to this day tend to have

441-548: Is in this region Riss glaciation terminal or ground moraine landscape Undulating The Wurzach Ried is in the east of the Riss-Aitrach Plateau Region between Senden , Aichstetten , Ochsenhausen and Laupheim Rolling hills Landscape still not very dissected Region between Neu-Ulm , Senden and Laupheim Comprises various old gravel terraces along the valleys of the Riss and Danube, formed during

490-648: Is it ever referred to as such in German, the Alps being die Alpen in German (plural). 48°18′N 9°21′E  /  48.3°N 9.35°E  / 48.3; 9.35 Gravel pit A gravel pit is an open-pit mine for the extraction of gravel . Gravel pits often lie in river valleys where the water table is high, so they may naturally fill with water to form ponds or lakes . Gravel pit lakes are typically nutrient rich and can support thriving ecosystems, but can also present environmental issues such as

539-661: Is named after the region of Swabia . It is part of the Table Jura ( Tafeljura ). The Swabian Jura occupies the region bounded by the Danube in the southeast and the upper Neckar in the northwest. In the southwest it rises to the higher mountains of the Black Forest . The highest mountain in the region is the Lemberg (1,015 m (3,330 ft)). The area's profile resembles a high plateau, which slowly falls away to

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588-498: Is still Daimler-Benz, today known simply as Daimler AG , followed by Robert Bosch . The region has one of the highest patents-to-population ratios in the world. Many products fall into the high-tech category. The small and medium enterprise sector (100-5,000 employees) predominates. Perhaps as a result, the unemployment rate is low. In general, products are expensive but compete through high quality. Several districts are recognised as especially attractive to business, e.g. Reutlingen as

637-592: Is the Fasnet celebration in Rottweil. Typical of the Allemannic tradition are the witches and forest- or well-spirits, who typically signify Winter or the forces of nature coming to drive Winter out. The various roles are often claimed to have been defined in pre-Christian times and here the exact traditions vary from village to village, creating a fantastic variety of heroes, villains and good and evil creatures. It

686-593: Is the fine silica dust created and stirred up by aggregate extraction processes and carried in the wind, which people breathe in and coats surfaces such as nearby homes and plants. There are also concerns that agricultural plants coated in dust from gravel pit operations pose a risk to human health through consumption if the plant contains the dust. There have been widespread movements by communities affected by gravel pit operations to have them moved away to less windy, residential, or agricultural areas, and for better safety precautions to be adopted for worker health. Once

735-574: The Achalm or the Hohenstaufen ) which testify to the former territory of the range. The omnipresent caves are great tourist spots, beautiful and not very crowded. Many different types can be found, from dry dripstone caves to caves that can only be entered by boat. Sometimes the discharge of the water from subterranean rivers can be spectacular, too, e.g. the Blautopf , a source for a tributary of

784-632: The Jura mountains , of which the Swabian and Franconian plateaux are geographically part. In German, at least outside geological circles, the word Alb is used almost universally in place of Jura . The origin of the word is uncertain. One theory is that it derives form the Latin albus ("white"). Another is that it is from a pre-Indo-European word albhros ("hill"). It is related to the German words Alpe , Alm or Alp (from Old High German alpâ ), meaning an " upland pasture ". The word Alb functions as

833-628: The Lech , roughly between Mering , Geltendorf and Schongau . To the south the Southern Alpine Foreland (D66 on the map) borders on the Iller-Lech Plateau. The boundary between these two natural regions is partly formed by the terminal moraines of the Würm glaciation . The sub-divisions are based upon the natural regions of Germany as shown on the BfN 's Landscapes in Germany map. In

882-726: The Riss glaciation Intensive arable land use The south is less dissected by valleys than the north Iller Valley from Altusried and Dietmannsried to where it joins the Danube at Neu-Ulm Broad valley filled by large quantities of gravel during and after the ice ages Flat The north is used more for arable farming; the south more as grassland Large fen plain by the Danube between Neu-Ulm and Donauwörth Würm Ice Age formed, partly boggy gravel plain Flat Used predominately for grassland and arable land, which has largely displaced

931-510: The Ulm area (e.g., Turritellenplatte of Ermingen). Constant rain and other weather influences are slowly dissolving the entire range. Each year, it recedes approximately 2 mm (0.08 in). Some millions of years ago, the mountains reached as far as Stuttgart . In some places, the limestone was more resistant to decay and thus the recession of the main range has left small mountains (called "Zeugenberge"—"witness mountains" or outliers ; e.g.

980-873: The common carp to create coarse fishing locations. Gravel pit lakes have also been stocked with carp in Denmark, as well as rainbow trout . Gravel pits are a main source of aggregates such as gravel and sand , which are extracted then processed extensively to be suitable for various uses. Aggregates are mined to make concrete , be crushed into construction aggregate , and for other industrial mineral uses. Gravel pits are located where there are rich sources of materials suitable to be crushed into aggregate, often at sites of fluvial, glacial, or floodplain geological deposits. Sedimentary and igneous rocks typically produce good quality aggregates of various sizes, but metamorphic rocks are rarely mined at gravel pits as they tend to have weaker geological structures. The strength of

1029-666: The Danube Hilly Landscape rising from north to south Swabian Jura The Swabian Jura ( German : Schwäbische Alb [ˈʃvɛːbɪʃə ˈʔalp] , more rarely Schwäbischer Jura [ˈʃvɛːbɪʃɐ ˈjuːʁa] ), sometimes also named Swabian Alps in English, is a mountain range in Baden-Württemberg , Germany , extending 220 km (140 mi) from southwest to northeast and 40 to 70 km (25 to 43 mi) in width. It

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1078-547: The Danube. Also because of the porous limestone, the Danube nearly disappears near Immendingen (in 1911, 1921, 1928 and 1943 it disappeared completely), only to reappear several kilometers further down. Most of the water lost by the Danube resurfaces in the Aachtopf , a spring for a tributary to the Rhine . The soil is not very fertile, the humus is often as thin as 10 cm (4 in). Many small limestone pebbles are found on

1127-595: The Rift and Mindel glaciation of the Rhine Glacier Gently rolling hill country Danube Valley between Mengen and Ulm, region between Herbertingen and Bad Saulgau, Riss Valley from Schemmerhofen to where it joins the Danube Flat Much grassland and arable farming The Riss valley from the south which merges into the Danube valley is more marshy that the Danube valley The Federsee lies in

1176-420: The aggregates mined at gravel pits is important to ensure that the products created using them have good structural integrity. Once a deposit of aggregate material is located (often in river valleys where rock has been carried downstream and settled overtime) the surface vegetation and topsoil is cleared to reveal the rock. Once a pit is dug into the aggregate, it can be lifted out by bulldozers that load it onto

1225-463: The ecology of the region. Silica dust caused by aggregate extraction is stirred up and carried in the wind coating plant leaves and minimizing photosynthesis, which not only disrupts natural vegetative processes but also affects agriculture and can therefore disrupt rural economies. Environmental impact assessments must be conducted before such projects to mitigate negative affects, and rehabilitation efforts should be undertaken after projects to restore

1274-517: The following table these sub-divisions are described from west to east. For the exact location and boundaries of the individual sub-divisions: see the BfN's map Landscapes in Germany ( http://www.bfn.de/geoinfo/landscapes/ Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine ) Region between Danube, Mühlingen , Pfullendorf , Ostrach , Bad Saulgau and Federsee Old Drift landscape dominated by

1323-564: The foreland of the Swabian Jura officially don't belong to it. There are many castles, monasteries, churches, ruins and old towns. Here is a small selection. A good way for tourists to get to know the Swabian Jura is to travel on the Schwäbische Albstraße , a "National Scenic Byway", leading from Tuttlingen or Trossingen to Nördlingen or Aalen . The name German : Jura (related to Jurassic ) derives from

1372-467: The highest rents in Germany, while land on the plateau itself is considered cheap (by south German standards). Many town names end in -ingen . There were several military training grounds, some also used by NATO troops. On the Münsingen training ground which existed for over 100 years, a biosphere reserve is in the making. The region has several larger and many small nature reserves. The towns in

1421-473: The hills are not steep or high) and numerous small resorts can be found. It is often windy and a bit colder than the rest of Germany. Because of a special micro climate, a small weather station near the town of Stetten am kalten Markt is known as the "coldest spot in Germany". The Swabian Jura are not densely populated by German standards. Most of the larger towns are outside the region, though they are often counted as part of it. These towns often have some of

1470-595: The human body, the Venus of Schelklingen . This region, located south of the limes , was part of the Roman Empire from around the first to third century A.D. A Roman road ran along the Neckar river and over the plateau. In Hechingen-Stein a Roman outpost along this road was discovered in the 1970s and has been turned into an outdoor museum. The limes actually cuts across the plateau at Aalen , which gets its name from

1519-408: The middle of this natural region near Bad Buchau Flat Because the lake has since been filled with sediment and gravel in places, the natural dammed lake was once much large Region between Danube, Riss and, roughly, the B 312 Tertiary Hill Country , in places however also ice age gravel deposits Hilly Agricultural land use predominates because the soils are loamy and fertile The Bussen

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1568-542: The natural ecosystem. Unfortunately, most old gravel pits have not been rehabilitated after aggregate extraction has ceased, and their potential to be restored to accommodate improved ecosystem function is wasted. The negative impacts on human health from gravel pit operations are well documented. Both workers of gravel pits and residents close to gravel pits are at risk of pulmonary issues ranging from shortness of breath and airway restriction to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and silicosis. The culprit of these issues

1617-652: The natural reed beds Many gravel pits Gently undulating glacial gravels divided into interfluvial ridges and gravel plateaus by river systems flowing from south to north Gently undulating Gently undulating The Stauden Plateau, Zusam Plateau and Stauffenberg region together form the Augsburg-Westliche Wälder Nature Park Flat Between Gennach and Lech, south of Denklingen Flat to hilly Pure forest landscape (mainly pine forests) Lech Valley from Schongau to Augsburg and from Augsburg to where it joins

1666-596: The near future as permafrost changes the road structure over time, which is a challenge affecting many isolated roads in the north, and one of the ways that gravel pits are particularly important to remote regions that face unique challenges. Gravel pits disrupt the natural processes of the landscapes in which they are operating by displacing vegetation, soil, and rock. This in turn re-routes surface water flow changing runoff patterns, which can create further environmental problems for entire watersheds. Habitats are destroyed, displacing wildlife and removing plants, which changes

1715-477: The original Roman cavalry post, or ala , on the outskirts of the modern town. Here too, the Roman ruins are being excavated and a museum has been open to the public since the late 1980s. Life was extremely hard in the Swabian Jura. The lack of water and the poor quality of the soil made it a backward region. For many villages fetching water required a long journey by horse. Since water often needed to be stored over

1764-575: The pavement, up to several meters. All the layers of the road structure requires naturally occurring aggregates that are extracted from gravel pits or other surface material extraction sites. Beyond the initial construction of paved roads, gravel pits are important for the ongoing maintenance of unpaved roads because the surfaces of unpaved roads must be continually graded and re-surfaced with new loads of aggregate. In remote regions served by isolated unpaved roads, gravel pit operations are often located at strategic intervals every few hundred kilometers along

1813-465: The plateau. In some places, former volcanic activity has left traces, such as maars and hills. In the west, the Zollerngraben (a geological depression in a tectonically active region) sometimes causes mild earthquakes. The Nördlinger Ries is a large meteorite crater (15 million years old). Tertiary relicts can be found in the southern part of Swabian Jura. Famous locations are known in

1862-407: The range: Black Jurassic , Brown Jurassic , and White Jurassic . White Jurassic may be as pure as 99% calcium carbonate . Since limestone is soluble in water, rain seeps through cracks everywhere, forming a karst landscape, featuring subterranean rivers which flow through a large system of caves before they emerge. As a result there are hardly any rivers, lakes or other forms of surface water on

1911-520: The release of toxic metals into watersheds from the exposed rock. Old, abandoned gravel pits are normally used either as nature reserves , or as amenity areas for water sports , landfills and walking . In Germany former gravel or sand pits that have filled up with water are known as Baggersee ("power dug lake") and popular for recreational use. In addition, many gravel pits in the United Kingdom have been stocked with freshwater fish such as

1960-425: The rest of Swabia . In former times, Yiddish , Pleißne and Romani was also spoken. The Pleißne was spoken by hawkers selling items such as baskets, brushes, and whips, and belongs to Rotwelsch . It was used as a code. The " Swabian – Alemannic " carnival is an important tradition in many of the villages, called variously " Fastnacht ", "Fasnacht", "Fasnet", or "Fasching". Of particular cultural importance

2009-497: The roadway in conjunction with road maintenance camps to provide the maintenance crews working out of these camps with the necessary materials. For example, along the Dempster Highway that stretches across the isolated northern region of Yukon Territory, Canada, there are several gravel pits in use for road maintenance and several more that have fallen into disuse. However, most are expected to be put back into operation in

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2058-485: The southeast. The northwestern edge is a steep escarpment (called the Albtrauf or Albanstieg, rising up 400 m (1,300 ft), covered with forests), while the top is flat or gently rolling. In economic and cultural terms, the Swabian Jura includes regions just around the mountain range. It is a popular recreation area. The whole Schwäbische Alb area is a UNESCO global geopark covering 6,688 km (2582 sq mi.); it

2107-649: The southwestern part of the Jura, in the region of the Großer Heuberg . There are many other peaks in the Alb, such as the Hornau , Ochsenberg , and Achalm . Fossils can be found everywhere in the Swabian Jura. Many large and important fossils were found here. At Holzmaden, outside of Weilheim unter Teck, a small private museum, called Urwelt-Museum Hauff, provides visitors with the opportunity to "dig" for fossils in their shale deposits. The Urwelt-Museum Hauff houses

2156-430: The surface. Much of the Swabian Jura consists of gentle to moderate hills often covered with forest or cleared for small-scale agriculture . The traditional landscape was grass fields with juniper bushes . Today this has become a comparatively rare sight. However, in certain places it is protected by the government of Baden-Württemberg. The highest elevations reach just over 1,000 metres (3,300 ft). They are all in

2205-456: The top of the plateau ( German : Albschwäbisch ) is markedly different from, and stronger than, even the broadest Swabian of the lowland areas. Across the whole Swabian region, many phrases and grammar are highly localized, even down to the village level; however, the Swabian dialect of the highland regions is characterised by a sing-song melody, and some of the verb forms are also distinct, not only from Standard German , but also from those of

2254-400: The town in Germany where it is simplest to open a new business. Educational resources are at a high level. The schools and universities of the region all enjoy top rankings within Germany. The Swabian Jura and the neighbouring region have developed from one of the poorest regions of Germany to one of its richest within the past 150 years. In winter it often snows. Skiing is popular (though

2303-404: The world's largest petrified crinoid (sea-lily) colony with a size of 18 m × 6 m (59 ft × 20 ft) and an age of about 180 million years. In a number of caves (including Vogelherd, Hohlenstein-Stadel , Geißenklösterle and Hohle Fels ), all just a few kilometers apart, some of the oldest signs of human artifacts were found. Best known are: a mammoth, a horse head,

2352-661: Was designated as a National Geopark in Germany in 2002 and became a member of the European Geoparks Network in 2004; in 2015 it was included in the newly established scheme of UNESCO Global Geoparks. In its central area it comprises a Swabian Alb Biosphere Reserve of 852.69 km (330 sq. mi.). The geology of the Swabian Jura is mostly limestone , which formed the seabed during the Jurassic period. The sea receded 50 million years ago. Three layers of different limestones are stacked over each other to form

2401-408: Was popular. This yielded the development of a strong textile industry. In the 1950s, Reutlingen was the German town with the highest number of millionaires, until the decline of the German textile industry hit them as well. Still, many high quality textile companies can be found, such as Hugo Boss , Merz b. Schwanen , Trigema , Reusch, Groz-Beckert and others (the town of Metzingen is widely known as

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