The wildlife of Greece includes the diverse flora, fauna, and funga of Greece, a country in southern Europe. The country is mostly mountainous with a very long, convoluted coastline, consisting of peninsulas and many islands. The climate ranges from Mediterranean through temperate to alpine, and the habitats include mountains, hills, forests, rivers, lakes, coasts and cultivated land.
Greece is a country in the Balkan Peninsula of southern Europe, and lies to the south of Albania, North Macedonia and Bulgaria, and west of Turkey. It has a long coastline with the Mediterranean Sea and the Aegean Sea, and includes the island of Crete and many smaller islands. Mainland Greece covers about 80% of the total territory and is largely mountainous. The largest mountain group is the Pindus Range which forms the spine of the Greek mainland, with the highest peak rising to 2,637 m (8,652 ft) above sea level. The country's tallest mountain, Mount Olympus is further east, and rises to 2,918 m (9,573 ft) above sea level. The large Peloponnese peninsula, in the south of the country, is separated from the rest of the Greek mainland by the Corinthian and Saronic Gulfs, but joined by the Isthmus of Corinth. [1]
Much of the country experiences a Mediterranean climate with warm or hot, dry summers and the rainfall falling in winter. The islands mostly have a Mediterranean climate, with the climate of Crete being particularly influenced by its maritime surroundings and proximity to Africa. Higher regions of the western and central parts of the country, and the mountainous parts of the Peloponnese, experience an alpine climate. The climate is very varied across the country; snow may still be lying near the peaks in June while the lowlands are experiencing high temperatures. [2]
Greece includes a great diversity of vascular plants among its flora. In 2013, there were 5,752 species and 1,893 subspecies of native and introduced plants, for a total of 6,620 taxa, including 1,278 endemic species and 452 endemic subspecies. [3] By June 2018, the number of species had been revised upwards with 6,695 taxa being listed, consisting of 5,828 species and 1,982 subspecies, belonging to 1,073 genera and 185 families. [4]
Much of Greece lies within the Aegean and Western Turkey sclerophyllous and mixed forests ecoregion. This is characterised by maquis shrubland which includes the evergreen oak and the Greek strawberry tree, as well as the kermes oak, the strawberry tree, green olive, the bay laurel, the cedar, the Spanish broom and others. Intensive land use has reduced these forests to remnants. Of the deciduous species most common are the ash, the elm, the Montpellier maple, the Judas tree, the terebinth, the smoke tree and others. Greece was connected to western Turkey during the Pliocene era, and the two countries include many identical plants among their flora. [5] The Cretan date palm has a very restricted range in southern Greece and Crete, with a few stands in Turkey. [6]
Larger, carnivorous mammals found in Greece include the European wildcat, the Balkan lynx, the red fox, the golden jackal, the grey wolf, the Eurasian brown bear, the American mink, the least weasel, the European polecat, the marbled polecat, the beech marten, the European pine marten, the European badger, the Eurasian otter and about twenty species of bat. [7] The island of Gyaros is the breeding area for the largest population of the endangered Mediterranean monk seal, [8] and about fifteen species of whales, dolphins and porpoises are reported in Greek waters. [7]
Ungulates found in Greece include the wild boar, the red deer, the fallow deer, the roe deer, the chamois and the endangered Cretan ibex. Also present are the European rabbit and the European hare, the southern white-breasted hedgehog and the northern white-breasted hedgehog, the European mole, some ten species of shrew and around thirty species of rodent (squirrels, dormice, mice, rats and voles). [7]
With its varied topography and habitats, Greece has a rich bird fauna. It is a meeting point for birds of three continents, the southern limit for some species and the northern limit for others. Beside the resident bird populations, many migratory species visit the country as they move seasonally between their breeding grounds and their overwintering areas. About 450 species of bird have been recorded in Greece. [9] The Dadia Forest in the northeast is an important area for birds of prey, where four species of vulture are among the thirty-six diurnal species of raptor that have been recorded. [10]
Birds commonly found in the maquis shrubland include the eastern subalpine and Rüppell's warblers, the cirl, rock and black-headed buntings, and the rock, red-legged and chukar partridges. [5] Wetland birds are well catered for by a number of Ramsar sites such as Lake Kerkini, [11] the Nestos Delta, [12] and the Evros Delta and their freshwater marshes, lakes, brackish lagoons, saltmarshes and mudflats. [13]
Greece's rivers are brimming with aquatic wildlife too, with a diverse range of endemic freshwater fishes, around 160 species were listed in 2015. [14] There are also several species of lampreys, notably three species of lamprey endemic to Greece; the Epirus brook lamprey, Greek brook lamprey and Almopaios brook lamprey. Lake inhabitants include the endemic Macedonian shad, formerly a fish that was commercially fished. Within the cyprinid fishes, there are five endemic barbels, including an island endemic; the Evia barbel, found only on Euboea. There are also four endemic chubs, three endemic roaches, two endemic rudds and the entire minnowroach genus Tropidophoxinellus is endemic to Greek freshwater.
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and Corsica. Crete rests about 160 km (99 mi) south of the Greek mainland, and about 100 km (62 mi) southwest of Anatolia. Crete has an area of 8,450 km2 (3,260 sq mi) and a coastline of 1,046 km (650 mi). It bounds the southern border of the Aegean Sea, with the Sea of Crete to the north and the Libyan Sea to the south. Crete covers 260 km from west to east but is narrow from north to south, spanning three longitudes but only half a latitude.
The wildlife of Liberia consists of the flora and fauna of the Republic of Liberia. This West African nation has a long Atlantic coastline and a range of habitat types, with a corresponding diversity of plants and animals. Liberia is considered a biodiversity hotspot and has more intact forests characteristic of the Upper Guinea Massif than do neighbouring countries. There are 2000 species of vascular plants, approximately 140 species of mammals, and over 600 species of birds.
The fauna of Europe is all the animals living in Europe and its surrounding seas and islands. Europe is the western part of the Palearctic realm. Lying within the temperate region, the wildlife is not as rich as in the hottest regions, but is nevertheless diverse due to the variety of habitats and the faunal richness of Eurasia as a whole.
Lake Skadar – also called Lake Scutari, Lake Shkodër and Lake Shkodra – lies on the border of Albania and Montenegro, and is the largest lake in Southern Europe. It is named after the city of Shkodër which lies at its southeastern coast. It is a karst lake.
The wildlife of Senegal consists of the flora and fauna of this nation in West Africa. Senegal has a long Atlantic coastline and a range of habitat types, with a corresponding diversity of plants and animals. Senegal has 188 species of mammals and 674 species of bird.
Lake Kerkini (Greek: Λίμνη Κερκίνη - Limni Kerkini is an artificial reservoir in Central Macedonia, Greece that was created in 1932, and then redeveloped in 1980, on the site of what was previously an extremely extensive marshland.
The Lake Sentarum National Park is a national park protecting one of the world's most biodiverse lake systems, located in the heart of Borneo Island, Kapuas Hulu Regency, West Kalimantan Province, Indonesia. It lies in the upper Kapuas River tectonic basin some 700 kilometres upstream from the delta. The basin is a vast floodplain, consisting of about 20 seasonal lakes, freshwater swamp forest and peat swamp forest. Local people call it as Lebak lebung (floodplain). The National Park is located in the western part of this basin, where three-quarters of the seasonal lakes occur. Approximately half of the park consists of lakes, while the other half consists of freshwater swamp forest.
Akyatan Lagoon is a 14700-hectare wetland ecosystem that is designated as Wetland of International Importance by Ramsar Convention. A major stop over for migrating birds, Akyatan is recognized as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International. It is the single largest green turtle rookery at the Mediterranean, holding 43% of the Mediterranean nesting population.
The fauna of Italy comprises all the animal species inhabiting the territory of the Italian Republic and its surrounding waters. Italy has probably the highest level of faunal biodiversity in Europe, with over 57,000 species recorded, representing more than a third of all European fauna. This is due to various factors. The Italian peninsula is in the centre of the Mediterranean Sea, forming a corridor between central Europe and North Africa, and it has 8,000 km (5,000 mi) of coastline. Italy also receives species from the Balkans, Eurasia, and the Middle East. Italy's varied geological structure, including the Alps and the Apennines, Central Italian woodlands, and Southern Italian Garigue and Maquis shrubland, also contribute to high climate and habitat diversity.
Tortuguero National Park is a national park in the Limón Province of Costa Rica. It is situated within the Tortuguero Conservation Area of the northeastern part of the country. Despite its remote location, reachable only by airplane or boat, it is the third-most visited park in Costa Rica. The park has a large variety of biological diversity due to the existence within the reserve of eleven different habitats, including rainforest, mangrove forests, swamps, beaches, and lagoons. Located in a tropical climate, it is very humid, and receives up to 250 inches (6,400 mm) of rain a year.
The wildlife of Turkey is abundant and diverse. Turkey is a large country with many geographic and climatic regions and a great diversity of plants and animals, each suited to its own particular habitat. About 1,500 species of vertebrates and 19,000 species of invertebrates have been recorded in the country. Some of the world's staple crops were first cultivated in this area and many of their wild relatives are still found here. The country acts as a crossroads for many birds during migration, connecting Europe, Asia, and the Near East.
The wildlife of Ukraine consists of its diverse fauna, flora and funga. The reported fauna consists of 45,000 species when including the areas of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. Ukraine's protected environments consist of 33 Ramsar sites covering an area of 7,446.51 square kilometres (2,875.11 sq mi). Biosphere nature reserves and three national parks are all part of the GEF projects portfolio of conservation of biodiversity in the Danube Delta. Their vegetation pattern is mixed forest area, forest-steppe area, steppe area, Ukrainian Carpathian Mountains and Crimean Mountains. Some of the protected areas that were reserves or parks are subsumed under the biosphere reserves.
The Aegean and Western Turkey sclerophyllous and mixed forests is an ecoregion in the lands around the Aegean Sea. The ecoregion covers most of mainland Greece, the Greek Aegean Islands, the western coast of Turkey, the southern Vardar river valley in North Macedonia, the southern Struma river valley at the extreme south-western corner of Bulgaria.
Mediterranean Wetlands comprise the wetlands of the Mediterranean region.
For a small country, Albania is characterised by a considerable wealth of terrestrial and marine ecosystems and habitats with contrasting floral, faunal, and fungal species, defined in an area of 28,748 square kilometres. Most of the country is predominantly of Mediterranean character, comprehending the country's center and south, while the alpine affinity is more visible in the northeast.
Prespa National Park is a national park situated in southeastern Albania on the border triangle shared with Greece and North Macedonia. At approximately 277.5 km2 (107.1 sq mi), the park encompasses the country's sections of the Great and Small Prespa Lake. It is considerably characterised by high mountains, narrow islands, vast freshwater wetlands, salt marshes, meadows, reed beds and dense forests.
The Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast stretches in the south-eastern Adriatic Sea beginning at the Gulf of Drin in the north, across the port cities of Shëngjin, Durrës, and Vlorë, to the Bay of Vlorë in the south, where the Albanian Riviera as well as the Albanian Ionian Sea Coast begins.
The Albanian Ionian Sea Coast is a coastline of the north-eastern Ionian Sea, that encompasses the south-western border of the Republic of Albania, stretching from the southern half of Karaburun Peninsula, across the historical region of Labëria, the city of Sarandë, the mountains of the Ceraunians, and the Albanian Riviera, to the Lake of Butrint, where the Strait of Corfu separates the country from Greece.
The Buna River-Velipojë Protected Landscape is a protected landscape area in northwestern Albania, encompassing the estuary of Drin, the lagoon of Viluni, the river of Buna with its estuary, and the gulf of Drin that runs across the city of Velipojë alongside the Adriatic Sea.
The wildlife of Spain includes the diverse flora and fauna of Spain. The country located at the south of France has two long coastlines, one on the north on the Cantabrian Sea, another on the East and South East on the Mediterranean Sea, and a smaller one on the west and south west on the Atlantic Ocean, its territory includes a big part of the Iberian Peninsula, the Canary Islands, the Balearic Islands and two enclaves in North Africa, Ceuta and Melilla. and the different climate zones, Spain is one of the countries in Europe with the greatest biodiversity.