the Galician Massif is a northwestern prolongation of the Meseta Central, the inner Iberian plateau and has great affinity with the geology of the Tras os Montes Portuguese region, so that it is considered as a whole under the name 'Galicia-Trás-os-Montes Zone'. It is composed ofPaleozoicmaterials with metamorphic rocks such as gneiss, slate and schist in the center and west, which were subject to Alpine folding. Its eastern end merges with the Cantabrian Mountains. The relief of the system, with an average height of, is relatively smooth compared with other Iberian ranges. It is however very complex, having no defined structural alignment owing to the heavy fluvial erosion that has fragmented the terrain. Generally the system includes mountains that are rounded in shape, often topped by small rocky outcrops, as well as horsts, basins and faults, roughly aligned in a N-S direction.
Vegetation
Since rain is abundant in Galicia, the undisturbed areas of the massif have a soft soil texture and are covered in dense vegetation of temperate deciduous forest where Quercus petraea and Quercus robur oaks predominate. The woods alternate with shrubland and wide natural meadows. The vegetation is quite homogeneous throughout the massif and there is great plant biodiversity in the Galician mountains. Many of the species found in the mountains were used in Galician traditional medicine. The Serra dos Ancares was declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2006.
Mountain ranges
From the southeast to the northwest the Galician Massif has three physiographic longitudinal sections:
The southwestern ranges; the highest elevations are found in this sector, including 2,047 m high PenaTrevinca, the highest point of the whole system. These ranges reach into the provinces of León and Zamora, hence the alternative name Macizo Galaico-Leonés, and show scars of the glacial period, which are apparent in the Serra do Eixe, also known as Serra da Segundera. Rivers Tera, Cabreira and Bibei run through glacial valleys and the San Martín de Castañeda Lake, Laguna de Lacillo lakes are moraine-dammed lakes.
The Galician Dorsal Range; with 1,778 m high Cabeza de Manzaneda, its highest elevation. A tectonic basin running in a north-south direction separates it from the southwestern ranges. It includes the Central Ourensan Massif.
The coastal ranges; such as Serra da Barbanza, are generally of a much lesser height and are separated from the Galician Dorsal Range by the Tui-Verín-Vigo intermontane basin.
