Geography of Israel

Where is the country of Israel located on world map? According to COUNTRYAAH.COM, Israel is an independent nation located in Western Asia. Israel celebrates its independence day on May 14, commemorating the country’s independence from British rule in 1948. The formal name of Israel is The State of Israel and its national symbols include a flag with two horizontal stripes of white and blue, an escutcheon featuring a shield with an image of a menorah above it, and the national seal which features an image of an olive branch. The national anthem is called “Hatikvah” which celebrates the country’s struggle for independence. The national flower is the Poppy while the national animal is the Israeli gazelle. Israel also has an official motto: “Am Yisrael Chai” (The Nation of Israel Lives). See historyaah for Israel history.

Nature

Terrain shapes and bedrock

The country’s topography varies greatly and different natural regions can be clearly discerned.

The central landform region is a hill and mountain landscape that extends in the north-south direction between the coast and the Jordan Valley, mainly within the West Bank occupied by Israel. The highest portions reach 800-1000 meters above sea level. The bedrock is mainly limestone from younger Cretaceous. Further north, the mountain landscape continues in the Carmel mountain range (546 m above sea level), a horst that cuts obliquely towards the Mediterranean coastline and rises markedly over the Yizreel plain, a narrow corridor that joins the coastal plain with the Jordan Valley. Galileen’s topography is also marked in the far north by numerous east – west fault lines.

The Earth Valley forms a long, deep and narrow fault basin that forms a northern part of the fault in and along the Red Sea. From the north to the south you can see Lake Kinnerets (210 m uh), the lower Jordan Valley between the West Bank and Jordan, the Dead Sea (412 m uh) and the Arava Valley (Wadi Araba), which at Eilat goes out in the Aqaba Bay.

A third major region is the Negev in southern Israel. Farther south in this desert area lies the Eilat Hills, which are built up by the oldest rocks in the country, Precambrian gneisses, granites and diorites, and to the north the red Nubian sandstone. Further north follows the Paran Plateau, the Negev Hills with the top Ramon (1,035 m above sea level) and the Beer Sheva Basin with the distinct hills of Ramon, Gadol and Qatan.

The coastal plain of the Mediterranean is a narrow region that is crossed by several smaller rivers, e.g. Yarqon and Qishon. The coastline is straight, except at Carmel, with a beach of dunes and sandstone ridges.

The soil in Israel varies from loose soil around Beer Sheva, alluvial soils in the plains and sandy soils in the deserts to calcareous terra ross as a thin layer of soil in the central mountain landscape.

• AbbreviationFinder: Offer a full list of commonly used abbreviations, acronyms, and initialisms related to the state of Israel.

Climate

Israel’s location creates a distinct Mediterranean climate with winter rain and summer drought. The annual average temperature for the country is 20 ° C. January is the coldest month with 8-10 ° C for the coastal land and 12 ° C for the coastal plain and 12-13 ° C for the Jordandalen. August is warmest with 22-26 ° C for the hill region, 24-26 ° C for the coastal plain and 28-34 ° C for the Jordandalen.

The rainfall is highest in the north (1,100 mm per year), lowest in the Jordandalen (100 mm) and in Eilat (25 mm). The winds are moderate; in the summer, however, the sea breeze blows regularly during the day and the occasional hot fall wind, sharav.

Plant Life

In the country, there are offshoots from four rather distinct flora areas, which leads to an unusually high species richness. Israel together with Jordan has about 2,400 species of vascular plants, but the number is not much lower for Israel alone. The coastal land and the mainly west-facing mountain slopes through Jerusalem are covered by Mediterranean vegetation, originally forests of alpine pine, kermesek and deciduous oaks. The forest is now almost entirely replaced by crops or different varieties of bushland; taller and denser macchia with kermesek and eastern strawberries (Aʹrbutus andreʹchne) or lower and more open batha, corresponding to the Greek frog, with small, sparsely growing shrubs such as the ginger relative Calycoʹtome villoʹsa and the rose plant Sarcopoteʹrium spinoʹsum. In this open secondary vegetation, the species number per unit area is among the highest in the world for arid areas, comparable to California’s. Especially many are annual wicker plants and pea plants.

Inside the Mediterranean area, in parts of the Jordan Valley and the Negev, there is a belt with a more continental climate and a flora of Iranian-Turan nature. Here, perennial wood species are important.

The drier parts of the Negev Desert are counted in the Saharan Arabian region, with many annual herbs that are widely distributed and common with Egypt, e.g. the pea plant Trigoneʹlla stellaʹta. The lower Jordan Valley and its continuation south of the Dead Sea, the Arava Valley, contains a lot of tropical species from the Sudano-Deccan flora area, including. trees such as acacias and the tulip plant Caloʹtropis proceʹra. Unlike most Mediterranean species, they are often summer blooming.

Wildlife

In the country, European, West Asian and North African fauna meet, which is why Israel is rich, although much of wildlife has been depleted in tandem with a multi-millennial biotope transformation. The mammalian fauna includes, among other things, wild boar, Dorcas gazelle (few in Negev), Nubian Capricorn (Caʹpra iʹbex nubiaʹna), wildcat, caracal, leopard (few), golden shawl, striped hyena, sand fox, red fox, wolf (few), otters, genus, small vulture capeʹnsis. Lions, cheetahs and brown bears were present in late times but are now extinct.

About 475 species of birds have been observed. There are a range of species that do not normally occur in Europe, e.g. green bee eaters, smyrnak kingfishers, gray fishermen, garden bulbyls and Israeli sunbirds (Nectariʹnia oseʹa). During spring and autumn, Israel is passed by large numbers of migratory birds, among other things. birds of prey and storks, from and to wintering areas in Africa. During the spring, concentrations are particularly high around Eilat at the Red Sea’s northeastern tip. The kräldjurs fauna is rich with, among other things. French finger lizards and dabbagamer. Nil crocodile was formerly but is now extinct. In the Red Sea there are very rich coral reefs with, among other things. a colorful fish fauna.

Nature conservation

In 2011, Israel had more than 60 national parks, both historical monuments and natural areas. With the exception of pests and some hunting species, all of the country’s mammals and birds are protected.