F L O R A

Main Page

DESPITE of its rich and diverse historical and cultural heritage North Cyprus has magnificent natural beauty. The richness of the flora partly be explained by the uniqueness of the Mediterranean climate. About 1900 kinds of flowering plants, including Gramineae grasses grow wild in North Cyprus. Following are the 19 kinds which occur here and nowhere else in the world;

Delphinium Caseyi
Brassica Hilarions

Arabis Cypria

Silene Fraudatrix

Dianthus Cyprius

Hedysarum Cyprium

Rosularia Cypria

Rosularia Pallidiflora

Sedum Iampusae

Ferulago Cypria

Pinpinella Cypria

Limonium albidum

Onosma Caespitosa

Origanum syriacum
Salvia Veneris
Sideritis Cypria

Phlomis Cypria

Scutellaria Sibthorpii

Teucrium Cyprium

HERBAL PLANTS IN NORTH CYPRUS

Together with wild plants, North Cyprus has natural growing herbal plants . These are;

Allium Ampeloprasum
Angallis Coronaria

Antırrhınum Majus

Arbutus Andrachne

Asparagus Acitifolius

Narcissus Tazetta

Salvia Fruticosa

Mandragora Officinarum

ORCHIDS

“ Nature has formed orchid flowers in a way that must either make us laugh, or excite our admiration”, wrote a 17^th century German botanist. Out of 20,000 or so orchids known, Cyprus has about 45 kinds and Northern Cyprus 30 of these. Pressed and preserved speciments, drawing and photographs of all these species can be seen at any time in North Cyprus Herbarium.

Scientific names of orchids are;

Orchis Italica Poir

Orchis Morio L.Var. Libani Soo’

Orchis Anatolica

Neotinea Maculata Stearn

Orphrys Lutea Cav. Ssp. Galilea Soo’

Orphrys fuca Link ssp. Flischmanni

Orphrys fuca Link ssp. Iricolor Holmboe

Orphrys Sphegodes Mill. Ssp. Mammosa Soo’

Orphrys Scolopax Cav

Orphrys Argolica H.Fleischm ssp. Elegans E.Nelson

Orphrys Kotschyi H.Fleischam et Soo’

Orphrys Bornmuelleri M.Schulze ssp. Graniflora

Orphrys Fuska Link ssp. Fusca

Serapias vomeracea Brig.ssp orientalis W.Greuter

Anacamptis Pyramidalis

Orchis Coriophora

Orchis Sancta

Limodorum Abortivum Swarts

Orchis Punctulata

Orchis Collina Banks et. Sol.

Orphrys umbilicata

Orphrys bornmuelleri

Göbekli Ofris

Maymun Orkidesi

Orchis Simia

Orphrys Umbilicata

Orphrys Argolica

Orphrys Bornmuelleri M.Schulze ssp. Bornmuelleri

Orphrys sphegodes Mill ssp. Transhyrcana Soo’

Orchis Simia Lam.

Orchis Simia
Orphrys Umbilicata Desf.ssp Umbilicata

Spiranthes Spiralis Chevall.

Barlia Robertiana Greuter

Dactylorhiza Romana Soo’
Orphrys Apifera Hudson

Serapias Parviflora

H E R B A R I U M

A “Herbarium” is a collection of pressed plant speciments mounted on paper and carefully labelled to show when, and by whom each was collected, providing precisely this guidance.To help future students as well as visitors including the many foreign experts who come to investigate the country’s flora, first North Cyprus Herbarium was opened by an English botanist, Dr. Deryck Viney, and assisted by the facilities of the Forestry Department. Herbarium is housed in the Alevkaya Forest Station on the mountain ridge between Değirmenlik and Esentepe. Herbarium comprised about 1100 species.

F a u n a

In contrast to the flora of North Cyprus, its fauna is unremarkable and unvaried. The bones of pigmy hippopotamus were discovered in North Cyprus. The moufflon, a type of wild sheep, foxes, hares, deer and wild pig are the animals of island. More than 250 Cyprus donkeys live freely in the Karpaz national park.

Sea Turtles

Sea turtles spend most of their lives in the water and only emerge onto dry land in order to lay their eggs. This takes place during a short time span and mostly at night. In order to lay their legs, they need to find untouched, undistributed, rather wide areas of sandy beach. Increase in the tourism activities in most Mediterranean countries has led to the turtles’ loss of irreplaceable egg-laying sites. On the other hand North Cyprus has undistributed areas where they may lay their eggs in the sand. There are two species which come to breed on Cyprus: the Loggerhead turtle ( Caretta Caretta ) and the rare Green turtle ( Chelonia mydas ). Up to %30 of all Green Turtles nest of the coastline of Northern Cyprus.

Birds

Some several millions of birds, of up to 250 different species, pass through North Cyprus during spring and autumn, flying from Europe to the Nile Delta.Many use the island as a “re-fuelling stop” and others spend the winter here.

Otus Scops Owl

Sylvia Melanothorax

Porus ater Cypriotes

Certheia Brachydactyla Dorothea

Garullus Glandarius Glaszneri

Laxia Curvirostra guillemardi are among the endemic species of the island. The best areas for bird-watching are in the Famagusta/Glapsides beach area, the Güzelyurt Bay area, south west of Mehmetçik village, the Karpaz Peninsula, the Kanlıköy reservoir and Sadrazamköy.