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Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USAi
Regional Level Types
Little Florida MountainsMountain Range
Luna CountyShaft (Reclaimed)
New MexicoState
USACountry

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PhotosMapsSearchMineralogy
06594500017271982817255.jpg
Rockhound State Park

Rockhound State Park, Little Florida Mountains Mining District, Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USA
02530120017271982853112.jpg
Rockhound State Park (2)

Rockhound State Park, Little Florida Mountains Mining District, Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USA
04226940017271982879007.jpg
Rockhound State Park (3)

Rockhound State Park, Little Florida Mountains Mining District, Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USA
06594500017271982817255.jpg
Rockhound State Park

Rockhound State Park, Little Florida Mountains Mining District, Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USA
02530120017271982853112.jpg
Rockhound State Park (2)

Rockhound State Park, Little Florida Mountains Mining District, Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USA
04226940017271982879007.jpg
Rockhound State Park (3)

Rockhound State Park, Little Florida Mountains Mining District, Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USA
06594500017271982817255.jpg
Rockhound State Park

Rockhound State Park, Little Florida Mountains Mining District, Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USA
02530120017271982853112.jpg
Rockhound State Park (2)

Rockhound State Park, Little Florida Mountains Mining District, Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New Mexico, USA
Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
32° 11' 49'' North , 107° 36' 2'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
32.19703,-107.60058
GRN:
N22W65
Type:
Mountain Range
Köppen climate type:
BSk : Cold semi-arid (steppe) climate
Mindat Locality ID:
291758
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:2:291758:3
GUID (UUID V4):
0


A small range of mountains located just to the NE of the Florida Mountains, S of Interstate highway 10.

Geology: The geology of the Little Florida Mountains has been described by Lasky (1940), and the reader is referred to that work for a detailed dis-cussion. The Little Florida Mountains are essentially a north-trending ridge 5 miles long and as much as 2 miles wide, composed of east-dipping felsite flows and tuffs capped by a thick sequence of agglomerate (fig. 14). Lasky believed that this agglomerate sequence was mainly of sedimentary origin and thus called it a fanglomerate. The present writer, however, believes that the portions which cap the ridge (i. e., which directly overlie the felsites), are mostly true agglomerates composed of angular fragments of volcanic rocks embedded in a tuffaceous matrix. Conglomerate lenses are present, but they constitute only a fraction of the total thickness of the formation.

Farther east, away from the main ridge, conglomerate, sandstone, and water-laid tuff crop out as patches surrounded by Quaternary alluvium. These sedimentary beds are well exposed in several cuts along US Highway 70-80 and at the Spar Mine. The writer believes these beds to be Tertiary gravels (Gila? conglomerate). Therefore, there are three divisions of the Tertiary rocks in the Little Florida Mountains: felsite flows and tuffs at the base, an agglomerate sequence that lies unconformably on the felsite, and a layer of Gila(?) conglomerate resting on the agglomerate.

Numerous north-striking faults of small displacement cut the Tertiary rocks. These faults provided the zones for fluorspar and manganese deposition. Post-ore movement is evident, but it is not extensive.

Select Mineral List Type

Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical Elements

Commodity List

This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded from this region.


Mineral List

Mineral list contains entries from the region specified including sub-localities

16 valid minerals.

Rock Types Recorded


Rock list contains entries from the region specified including sub-localities

Select Rock List Type

Alphabetical List Tree Diagram

Detailed Mineral List:

ⓘ 'Apatite'
Formula: Ca5(PO4)3A
ⓘ Baryte
Formula: BaSO4
ⓘ Calcite
Formula: CaCO3
ⓘ Cryptomelane
Formula: K(Mn4+7Mn3+)O16
ⓘ Fluorite
Formula: CaF2
ⓘ Forsterite
Formula: Mg2(SiO4)
ⓘ Hematite
Formula: Fe2O3
ⓘ Hollandite
Formula: Ba(Mn4+6Mn3+2)O16
ⓘ 'Limonite'
ⓘ Magnetite
Formula: Fe2+Fe3+2O4
ⓘ Manganite
Formula: Mn3+O(OH)
ⓘ Opal
Formula: SiO2 · nH2O
Colour: white, bluish-white, yellow
Fluorescence: green (SW)
ⓘ Orthoclase
Formula: K(AlSi3O8)
ⓘ 'Plagioclase'
Formula: (Na,Ca)[(Si,Al)AlSi2]O8
ⓘ 'Psilomelane'
Localities: Reported from at least 8 localities in this region.
ⓘ Pyrolusite
Formula: Mn4+O2
Localities: Reported from at least 8 localities in this region.
ⓘ Quartz
Formula: SiO2
Localities: Reported from at least 8 localities in this region.
ⓘ Quartz var. Agate
Formula: SiO2
ⓘ Quartz var. Brecciated Agate
Formula: SiO2
ⓘ Quartz var. Chalcedony
Formula: SiO2
ⓘ Quartz var. Smoky Quartz
Formula: SiO2
ⓘ Stibiconite
Formula: Sb3+Sb5+2O6(OH)
ⓘ Thomsonite-Ca
Formula: NaCa2[Al5Si5O20] · 6H2O
ⓘ 'Thunder Egg'
ⓘ 'Wad'
Localities: Reported from at least 9 localities in this region.
ⓘ Zircon
Formula: Zr(SiO4)

List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification

Group 3 - Halides
ⓘFluorite3.AB.25CaF2
Group 4 - Oxides and Hydroxides
ⓘMagnetite4.BB.05Fe2+Fe3+2O4
ⓘHematite4.CB.05Fe2O3
ⓘQuartz
var. Agate		4.DA.05SiO2
ⓘvar. Chalcedony4.DA.05SiO2
ⓘ4.DA.05SiO2
ⓘvar. Smoky Quartz4.DA.05SiO2
ⓘvar. Brecciated Agate4.DA.05SiO2
ⓘOpal4.DA.10SiO2 · nH2O
ⓘPyrolusite4.DB.05Mn4+O2
ⓘStibiconite4.DH.20Sb3+Sb5+2O6(OH)
ⓘCryptomelane4.DK.05aK(Mn4+7Mn3+)O16
ⓘHollandite4.DK.05aBa(Mn4+6Mn3+2)O16
ⓘManganite4.FD.15Mn3+O(OH)
Group 5 - Nitrates and Carbonates
ⓘCalcite5.AB.05CaCO3
Group 7 - Sulphates, Chromates, Molybdates and Tungstates
ⓘBaryte7.AD.35BaSO4
Group 9 - Silicates
ⓘForsterite9.AC.05Mg2(SiO4)
ⓘZircon9.AD.30Zr(SiO4)
ⓘOrthoclase9.FA.30K(AlSi3O8)
ⓘThomsonite-Ca9.GA.10NaCa2[Al5Si5O20] · 6H2O
Unclassified
ⓘ'Limonite'-
ⓘ'Psilomelane'-
ⓘ'Wad'-
ⓘ'Plagioclase'-(Na,Ca)[(Si,Al)AlSi2]O8
ⓘ'Apatite'-Ca5(PO4)3A
ⓘ'Thunder Egg'-

List of minerals for each chemical element

HHydrogen
Hⓘ ManganiteMn3+O(OH)
Hⓘ OpalSiO2 · nH2O
Hⓘ StibiconiteSb3+Sb25+O6(OH)
Hⓘ Thomsonite-CaNaCa2[Al5Si5O20] · 6H2O
CCarbon
Cⓘ CalciteCaCO3
OOxygen
Oⓘ Quartz var. AgateSiO2
Oⓘ BaryteBaSO4
Oⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Oⓘ Quartz var. ChalcedonySiO2
Oⓘ CryptomelaneK(Mn74+Mn3+)O16
Oⓘ ForsteriteMg2(SiO4)
Oⓘ HematiteFe2O3
Oⓘ HollanditeBa(Mn64+Mn23+)O16
Oⓘ ManganiteMn3+O(OH)
Oⓘ MagnetiteFe2+Fe23+O4
Oⓘ OpalSiO2 · nH2O
Oⓘ OrthoclaseK(AlSi3O8)
Oⓘ PyrolusiteMn4+O2
Oⓘ QuartzSiO2
Oⓘ Quartz var. Smoky QuartzSiO2
Oⓘ StibiconiteSb3+Sb25+O6(OH)
Oⓘ Thomsonite-CaNaCa2[Al5Si5O20] · 6H2O
Oⓘ ZirconZr(SiO4)
Oⓘ Quartz var. Brecciated AgateSiO2
Oⓘ Plagioclase(Na,Ca)[(Si,Al)AlSi2]O8
Oⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3A
FFluorine
Fⓘ FluoriteCaF2
NaSodium
Naⓘ Thomsonite-CaNaCa2[Al5Si5O20] · 6H2O
Naⓘ Plagioclase(Na,Ca)[(Si,Al)AlSi2]O8
MgMagnesium
Mgⓘ ForsteriteMg2(SiO4)
AlAluminium
Alⓘ OrthoclaseK(AlSi3O8)
Alⓘ Thomsonite-CaNaCa2[Al5Si5O20] · 6H2O
Alⓘ Plagioclase(Na,Ca)[(Si,Al)AlSi2]O8
SiSilicon
Siⓘ Quartz var. AgateSiO2
Siⓘ Quartz var. ChalcedonySiO2
Siⓘ ForsteriteMg2(SiO4)
Siⓘ OpalSiO2 · nH2O
Siⓘ OrthoclaseK(AlSi3O8)
Siⓘ QuartzSiO2
Siⓘ Quartz var. Smoky QuartzSiO2
Siⓘ Thomsonite-CaNaCa2[Al5Si5O20] · 6H2O
Siⓘ ZirconZr(SiO4)
Siⓘ Quartz var. Brecciated AgateSiO2
Siⓘ Plagioclase(Na,Ca)[(Si,Al)AlSi2]O8
PPhosphorus
Pⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3A
SSulfur
Sⓘ BaryteBaSO4
KPotassium
Kⓘ CryptomelaneK(Mn74+Mn3+)O16
Kⓘ OrthoclaseK(AlSi3O8)
CaCalcium
Caⓘ CalciteCaCO3
Caⓘ FluoriteCaF2
Caⓘ Thomsonite-CaNaCa2[Al5Si5O20] · 6H2O
Caⓘ Plagioclase(Na,Ca)[(Si,Al)AlSi2]O8
Caⓘ ApatiteCa5(PO4)3A
MnManganese
Mnⓘ CryptomelaneK(Mn74+Mn3+)O16
Mnⓘ HollanditeBa(Mn64+Mn23+)O16
Mnⓘ ManganiteMn3+O(OH)
Mnⓘ PyrolusiteMn4+O2
FeIron
Feⓘ HematiteFe2O3
Feⓘ MagnetiteFe2+Fe23+O4
ZrZirconium
Zrⓘ ZirconZr(SiO4)
SbAntimony
Sbⓘ StibiconiteSb3+Sb25+O6(OH)
BaBarium
Baⓘ BaryteBaSO4
Baⓘ HollanditeBa(Mn64+Mn23+)O16

Localities in this Region

USA
USA

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

North AmericaContinent
North America PlateTectonic Plate

This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.

References

Lasky, S. G. (1940) Manganese deposits in the Little Florida Mountains, Luna County, New. Mexico, USGS Bulletin 922-C.
[1]Griswold, George B. (1961) Mineral deposits of Luna County, New Mexico. Bulletin 72. New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources doi:10.58799/b-72 p.129
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