Francois Mountains of Missouri. Wahzhazhe Summit formerly known as Buffalo Lookout , is the highest point in the Ozarks at 2, feet m , and is located in the Boston Mountains, in the westernmost part of Newton County, Arkansas , 6. Geologically, the area is a broad dome with the exposed core in the ancient St. Francois Mountains.
The Ozarks cover nearly 47, square miles , km 2 , making it the most extensive highland region between the Appalachians and Rockies.
Together with the Ouachita Mountains , the area is known as the U. Interior Highlands. On the northern Ozark border are the cities of St. Louis and Columbia, Missouri. Branson , just north of the ArkansasβMissouri border, is a tourist destination where Ozark culture is popularized.
Another possible etymological origin might be the French phrase aux arcs , meaning "[land] of the arches", [ 7 ] in reference to the dozens of natural bridges formed by erosion and collapsed caves in the Ozark region. Francis National Forest. By the early 20th century, the term "Ozarks" had entered common parlance. Karst features such as springs , [ 11 ] losing streams , sinkholes and caves are common in the limestones of the Springfield Plateau and abundant in the dolomite bedrock of the Salem Plateau and Boston Mountains.
The majority of these caves are found in the Ozark counties. Kept open by periodic fires that limit growth of grasses and forbs in shallow soil, glades are home to collared lizards, tarantulas, scorpions, cacti and other species more typical of the Desert Southwest. The Boston Mountains contain the highest elevations of the Ozarks, with peaks over 2, feet m , and form some of the greatest relief of any formation between the Appalachians and Rocky Mountains.
