Principality of Andorra

Birding Andorra

Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra (Catalan: Principat d’Andorra), also called the Principality of the Valleys of Andorra, is a small landlocked country in western Europe, located in the eastern Pyrenees mountains and bordered by Spain and France. Once isolated, it is currently a prosperous country mainly because of tourism and its status as a tax haven. The people of Andorra are currently listed as having the second highest human life expectancy in the world, at an average of 82.67 years at birth (2008 est). Andorra is the sixth smallest nation in Europe, after Malta, Liechtenstein, San Marino, Monaco, and the Vatican City.

Due to its location in the eastern Pyrenees mountain range, Andorra consists predominantly of rugged mountains of an average height of 1,996 metres (6,549 ft) with the highest being the Coma Pedrosa at 2,946 metres (9,665 ft). These are dissected by three narrow valleys in a Y shape that combine into one as the main stream, the Valira river, leaves the country for Spain (at Andorra’s lowest point of 870 m/2,854 ft). Andorra’s surface area is 468 square kilometres (181 sq mi).Andorra’s climate is similar to that of its neighbours’ temperate climates, but its higher altitude means there is, on average, more snow in winter and it is slightly cooler in summer.Phytogeographically, Andorra belongs to the Atlantic European province of the Circumboreal Region within the Boreal Kingdom. According to the WWF, the territory of Andorra belongs to the ecoregion of Pyrenees conifer and mixed forests.