WorldWide Flora & Fauna in amateur radio

WorldWide Flora & Fauna in amateur radio
http://www.wwff.co/

This is not the official 5BFF website however i felt like i should write some things regarding the Flora and Fauna of Cyprus and also the wwff activity in Cyprus

Cyprus is an island in the mediteranian. It was created by the colision of two tektonic plates which led a part of the sea crest to arrise from the sea (like legend has it Aphrodite arose from the sea) 

This fact makes the central mountain of Cyprus, Troodos very unique because of the rocks . many geologists prefer to study the rocks of the sea floor on the mountain instead of having to scuba-dive to get some samples.

Flora

The flora of Cyprus is as rich as the flora found in other areas of the Mediterranean region. This is due to a number of factors, including geological structure, climatic conditions, geographic location, its insular character, the surrounding sea and the topographical configuration.

The endemic plants of Cyprus, according to the latest update (April  2012), are 144 (plants that can only be found in cyprus . Its normal for islands to have a large number of endemic plants since its not so easy to migrate overseas. 

a complete list can be found here http://www.naturemuseum.org.cy/lang1/endemic_plants.html

Our national endemic flower is the Cyclament Cyprium which is different from the cyclament persicum which is widly spread on the island . its much smaller , its leaves are spiky and not hard shaped.

Our national endemic tree is the golden leaf Oak Quercus alnifolia  .Yes you guessed it the leafs have a golden color . 

we also have harob trees widly spread on the island . they were called the black gold in the old days because of the many uses and products Cypriots used harobs for. even gold was mesured with harob seeds because harob seeds always have the same weight. every 5 harob seeds are one carat.  

 The Fauna of Cyprus

Presently, about 30 mammal species, 25 reptiles and amphibians, 370 bird species, 250 fish species and around 6000 insect species are known to live in various habitats of the island.

Cyprus is one of the most important migratory routes in Europe because of its geographical position. It is also considered as an area with rich avifauna and an important bird area in Europe with high endemism.

The number of bird species recorded until now in Cyprus is 370. Of those, 53 are permanent residents while the remaining 317 are migrants. Of the migratory birds, 237 are common visitors and the remaining 80 are rare or very rare visitors. The number of the migratory birds visiting Cyprus in a year depends on the climatic conditions of Northern and Eastern Europe as well as the amount of precipitation that falls on the island in a given year. 

There are 22 reptiles and 3 amphibian species living in Cyprus. They include 3 turtle species, 11 species of lizards (4 endemic subspecies) and 8 snake species, which include one endemic species and two endemic subspecies. Three of the snakes found in Cyprus are poisonous but only one can be harmful to man.
Three frog species are included in the amphibians.
Up to date, records and studies indicate that the number of insects presently known from Cyprus is about 6000. One of the most important group of insects, are butterflies which belong to the order of Lepidoptera. There are 52 butterfly species in Cyprus, 9 of which are endemic. Many other insect species are endemic and the most important habitats of those species are protected.

The national endemic species of cyprus is the famous Moufflon which is called “Ovis gmelini ophion”

Following the map of the national Parks. Troodos forest is included in the 
Global Geoparks Network GGN of UNESCO

Five of the parks are included in the Worldwide Flora & Fauna Radio amateur program whos purpose is to draw attention in the importance of respecting and protecting nature.