Cyprus Natural Environment

Cyprus is an island with an area of 9,251 sq. km. (3,572 sq. mi.), located in the eastern Mediterranean, about 64 km south of Turkey, 97 km west of Syria and 386 km north of Egypt.  The coordinates are 35 00 N, 33 00 E.

 It is 225 km wide from east to west and has a maximum breadth of 96.5 km from the north to the south.

There is a wide central plain (Mesaoria) in the middle of the island with a maximum elevation of not more than 100 meters, and mountain ranges in the north and south.  The Besparmak Range is on the north with a length of 160 km from east to west; its highest peak is Selvili Tepe at a height of 1,024 meters.  On the western side of the island is the Troodos Mountain Range, which extends to the east and ends at about the middle of the island.  Mount Olympus, at 1,952 meters, is the highest peak in this mountain system. 

During the rainy season in winter, river torrents are formed which flow down Troodos in all directions.  Both Besparmak and Troodos have many springs along their lopes.  The south has incontiguous coastal plains along parts of the coast. There are two large salt lakes, Lamacos and Limassol, both in the southern part of the island and are important wetlands in the eastern Mediterranean region used by many species of birds, including those which come during the migratory season. 

The capital city is Nicosia.  Other larger cities include Paphos and Limassol in the south and Famagusta in the north east and Krenia in the north

Cyprus has a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers from June to September and cool, wet winters from November and March.  The spring and autumn seasons are brief.  There are substantial differences in the climate between the coastal and inland regions.