FENGCONG

   ; fengcong karst

   (Chinese.)

   1. A karst, conspicuous in China, that is identified by its clustered limestone hills. Fengcong (pronounced ‘fungston’), which translates as ‘peak cluster’, is a mature karst normally developed during long uninterrupted periods of rapid dissolution in wet tropical environments with high levels of biogenic soil carbon dioxide. The Chinese classify karst by the hill or peak density, in contrast to the Western classification by hill shape. Fencong is almost the equivalent of cone karst; its closely packed hills are conical rather than hemispherical, with intervening dolines and disjointed valleys. The major occurrences are in Guizhou and Guangxi, in southern China. Some cones in Guangxi are so steep that they have been termed fengcong tower karst, but this concept is best avoided [9].

   2. Tower karst characterized as peak cluster because the individual karst towers appear to be grouped together in clusters. Closed depression among the peaks are common [4].

   See also fenglin; fungling; mogote; tower karst.