The wildlife of Greece includes the diverse

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is '' flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...

, 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 The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

through temperate to

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

, and the

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s include mountains, hills, forests, rivers, lakes, coasts and cultivated land.

Geography

Greece is a country in the

Balkan Peninsula The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

of southern European, and lies to the south of

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

and

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

, and west of

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

. It has a long coastline with the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

and the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi ( Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans ...

, and includes the island of

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) 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 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 above sea level. The country's tallest mountain,

Mount Olympus Mount Olympus (; el, Όλυμπος, Ólympos, also , ) is the highest mountain in Greece. It is part of the Olympus massif near the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, located in the Olympus Range on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, be ...

is further east, and rises to 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 Gulf The Saronic Gulf ( Greek: Σαρωνικός κόλπος, ''Saronikós kólpos'') or Gulf of Aegina in Greece is formed between the peninsulas of Attica and Argolis and forms part of the Aegean Sea. It defines the eastern side of the isthmus of ...

s, but joined by the Isthmus of Corinth.

Climate

Much of the country experiences a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

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 Alpine climate is the typical weather (climate) for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate. Definition There are multiple definitions o ...

. 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.

Flora

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 Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

species and 452 endemic subspecies. 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. Much of Greece lies within the Aegean and Western Turkey sclerophyllous and mixed forests ecoregion. This is characterised by

maquis shrubland 220px, Low maquis in Corsica 220px, High ''macchia'' in Sardinia ( , , ) or ( , ; often in Italian; hr, makija; ; ) is a shrubland biome in the Mediterranean region, typically consisting of densely growing evergreen shrubs. Maquis is c ...

which includes the evergreen oak and the

Greek strawberry tree Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: * Greeks, an ethnic group. * Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. ** Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ances ...

, 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 Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non-gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

, the elm, the

Montpellier maple ''Acer monspessulanum'', the Montpellier maple, is a species of maple native to the Mediterranean region from Morocco and Portugal in the west, to Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, and Israel in the east, and north to the Jura Mountains in France and the ...

, the Judas tree, the

terebinth ''Pistacia terebinthus'' also called the terebinth and the turpentine tree, is a deciduous tree species of the genus '' Pistacia'', native to the Mediterranean region from the western regions of Morocco and Portugal to Greece and western an ...

, the

smoke tree Smoke tree, or Smoketree, may refer to any of several plants, some of whose parts are finely divided and give the appearance of smoke from a distance: * ''Cotinus'', a genus of garden shrub commonly referred to as the Smoketree. ** ''Cotinus cog ...

and others. Greece was connected to western Turkey during the

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58Cretan date palm has a very restricted range in southern Greece and Crete, with a few stands in Turkey.

Fauna

Larger, carnivorous mammals found in Greece include the

European wildcat The European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') is a small wildcat species native to continental Europe, Scotland, Turkey and the Caucasus. It inhabits forests from the Iberian Peninsula, Italy, Central and Eastern Europe to the Caucasus. Its ...

, the Balkan lynx, the

red fox The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the Order (biology), order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe ...

, the golden jackal, the

grey wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly u ...

, the Eurasian brown bear, the American mink, the least weasel, the

European polecat The European polecat (''Mustela putorius''), also known as the common polecat, black polecat, or forest polecat, is a species of mustelid native to western Eurasia and North Africa. It is of a generally dark brown colour, with a pale underbelly ...

, the

marbled polecat The marbled polecat (''Vormela peregusna'') is a small mammal belonging to the monotypic genus ''Vormela'' within the mustelid subfamily Ictonychinae. ''Vormela'' is from the German word , which means "little worm". The specific name ''pereg ...

, the beech marten, the European pine marten, the European badger, the Eurasian otter and about twenty species of bat.This list is derived from the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biolo ...

which lists species of mammals and their distributions. The island of

Gyaros Gyaros ( el, Γυάρος ), also locally known as Gioura ( el, Γιούρα), is an arid, unpopulated, and uninhabited Greek island in the northern Cyclades near the islands of Andros and Tinos, with an area of . It is a part of the municipality ...

is the breeding area for the largest population of the endangered Mediterranean monk seal, and about fifteen species of

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...

dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the b ...

s and

porpoise Porpoises are a group of fully aquatic marine mammals, all of which are classified under the family Phocoenidae, parvorder Odontoceti (toothed whales). Although similar in appearance to dolphins, they are more closely related to narwhals a ...

s are reported in Greek waters. Golden Jackal in Greece @2020 1

Ungulates found in Greece include the

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species i ...

, the

red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of ...

, the fallow deer, the

roe deer The roe deer (''Capreolus capreolus''), also known as the roe, western roe deer, or European roe, is a species of deer. The male of the species is sometimes referred to as a roebuck. The roe is a small deer, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapt ...

, the

chamois The chamois (''Rupicapra rupicapra'') or Alpine chamois is a species of goat-antelope native to mountains in Europe, from west to east, including the Alps, the Dinarides, the Tatra and the Carpathian Mountains, the Balkan Mountains, the R ...

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 Shrews (family Soricidae) are small mole-like mammals classified in the order Eulipotyphla. True shrews are not to be confused with treeshrews, otter shrews, elephant shrews, West Indies shrews, or marsupial shrews, which belong to differ ...

and around thirty species of

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...

(

squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. ...

s, dormice, mice, rats and

vole Voles are small rodents that are relatives of lemmings and hamsters, but with a stouter body; a longer, hairy tail; a slightly rounder head; smaller eyes and ears; and differently formed molars (high-crowned with angular cusps instead of lo ...

s). 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. The

Dadia Forest The Dadia Forest is a large area of natural woodland in the Evros regional unit in northeastern Greece. The forest consists mostly of oak and pine. It is one of the most important areas in Europe for birds of prey, and the only forest in Europe ...

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. Birds commonly found in the maquis shrubland include the eastern subalpine and

Rüppell's warbler Rüppell's warbler (''Curruca ruppeli'') is a typical warbler of the genus ''Curruca''. It breeds in Greece, Turkey and neighbouring islands. It is migratory, wintering in northeast Africa. This is a rare vagrant to western Europe. The name is ...

s, the cirl, rock and black-headed buntings, and the rock, red-legged and chukar partridges. Wetland birds are well catered for by a number of Ramsar sites such as

Lake Kerkini Lake Kerkini ( gr, 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. L ...

, the Nestos Delta, and the Evros Delta and their freshwater marshes, lakes, brackish lagoons, saltmarshes and mudflats. Greece's rivers are brimming with aquatic wildlife too, with a diverse range of endemic freshwater fishes, around 160 species were listed in 2015. 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 is an endemic barbel; the Evia barbel, found only on Evia Island, critically endangered and suffering from increasing droughts and barriers to movement.

References

{{Europe in topic, Wildlife of

Biota of Greece