Flora & Fauna

Corfu the island of the Gods and Durrell.

Beautiful and fascinating Corfu nature is a drawing card for many visitors to the island. The interior of Corfu is rich in vegetation, combined with the high dampness, full of olive groves, cypress trees and citrus fruit plantations.

A significant role is the rich flora found on the island and the mountain range of Pantokratoras. On its slopes we find dozens of varieties of flowers and plants, while on its trees we find various birds. This is especially true during spring

600 square kilometers of countryside awaits exploration. Here you will encounter natural beauty characterised by lush vegetation, pristine beaches, traditional villages and unpretentious people, as well as tourist resorts with luxury hotels, restaurants, little tavernas and bars suitable for every occasion. Wander around the countryside, and lose yourself on the roads and tracks which lead to Corfu's past, as well as to it's future.

Paradise for nature lovers is the area of Mon Repos which hosted the Botanical Garden of the Ionian Academy. Today we can find there many rare and exotic plants.

For those who enjoy climbing, the mountains of the island offer marvellous mountain climbing excursions and the Mountain Climbing Club of Corfu organises excursions and gives lessons in the techniques of climbing.

Corfu Mountain Climbing Club
Tel: 0661 39481

Happy watching

This list has been compiled over the years from people (Some were keen amateurs, others serious ornithologists) who have spotted these birds in different parts of the Island. Two experts have checked this list, so please note their comments.

Why not purchase a good Field Guide, the one by Lars Jonsson is currently highly recommended, part of his book was previously published as 'Birds of the Mediterranean and Alps'.

Nature.

Someone visiting Greece for the first time may be very surprised to see the bare hillsides with their many rocks, scattered, low vegetation and few trees. This undergrowth, known as maquis, contains a number of interesting plants which are able to thrive in barren habitats. If it manages to escape use as pastureland, the maquis gives birth to low-growing plant life, consisting mostly of shrubs up to 2 metres high, such as arbutus, broom, Judas trees, treelike white heather, Jerusalem sage (phlomis fruticosa) with its large yellow flowers and various types of cistus (rock rose) with whit or pink blossoms that resemble wild roses.

The wild plants of Greece are found everywhere from coastal areas to the alpine slopes of high mountains, from the islands of the Ionian to those of the Eastern Aegean.

Between these extremities, the soil and climate conditions provide the proper environment for the survival of plants with widely divergent needs. Some are hardy and are found nearly everywhere; others are adapted only to special soils and climates and consequently very rare.

The expanses of sandy shore, the crevices in rocks and walls also have their own characteristic wild flowers. Interesting flora even grow by the sides of roads and in desert-like environments, stubbornly struggling to withstand the incursions of man in recent years.