A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by a more resistant layer or layers of harder rock, e.g. shales overlain by sandstones. The resistant layer acts as a caprock that forms the flat summit of a mesa. The caprock can consist of either sedimentary rocks such as sandstone and limestone; dissected lava flows; or a deeply eroded duricrust. Unlike plateau, whose usage does not imply horizontal layers of bedrock, e.g. Tibetan Plateau, the term mesa applies exclusively to the landforms built of flat-lying strata. Instead, flat-topped plateaus are specifically known as tablelands.
Jishou, referred to as Ji, is the prefecture-level administrative capital of Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Hunan Province. The city is adjacent to Luxi County in the southeast, Huayuan County in the northwest, Fenghuang County in the southwest and Baojing County and Guzhang County in the north. Jishou is located between latitude 28 °08 / 28 °29 'north and longitude 109 °30 / 110 °04' east. The total area is 1078.33 square kilometers, and the urban built-up area of Jishou City in 2018 covers an area of 38 square kilometers. Jishou is located in the hinterland of Wuling Mountain, backed by Wuling Mountain. Jishou's climate is a typical subtropical monsoon humid climate. In 2018, Jishou City has jurisdiction over 1 township, 5 towns and 6 streets. At the end of 2018, the total registered population of Jishou City was 311600, an increase of 0.55% over the previous year, and the resident population was 358200, an increase of 3%.