GEOGRAPHY of MALLORCA

The Balearic island, consisting of Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, Formentera, Cabrera, and Dragonera are situated in the western Mediterranean and their distance from mainland Spain ranges from 90 to 200 kilometer.

Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza are the main islands, whilst Cabrera and Dragonera are really on big rocks. Mallorca, the biggest, occupies 3600 km2 out of 5000 km2 for all the islands and has a population of 600.000 out of a total of 750.000. The total coastline of Mallorca measures some 300 km. Only 7 places have a city-status, they are Palma, Manacor, Inca, Ljucmajor, Felanitx, Soller and Alcudia. Furthermore there are 52 autonomes municipalities.

The Mountain-range called "SERRA DE TRAMUNTANA" extends from southwest (Dragonera) to the extreme North (Cap de Formentor). The mountain chain is 100 kilometer long and up to 12 km wide, thus occupying approximately a fifth of the island.

The highest peaks are:

 

The enormous mountain range protects the island from the sometimes extremely violent Northern winds and makes agriculture possible in the southern parts . called the Plains (Es Pla) - giving these part great fertility. The level surfaces are provided with water by means of mills - nowadays motorized- of which hundred can be seen. Mallorca has three large bays, the Bahia de Palma in the south and the Bahias de Alcudia and Pollensa in the North. Furthermore there are countless numbers of smaller bays, all with their beaches of fine sand and beautiful clear waters.

Minerals are more or less non-existent on the island. The ground, however, contains lots of calc, reason for the formation of many spectacular dripstone caves, f.i. the "Cuevas dels Hams" in Porto Christo, as well as those in Arta, Campanet and Genova. Another treasure of the earth is the marble. Specially the black marble from Binisalem and the reddish from Sollerich were much used in the building of palaces and churches. Also well known is the kind of sandstone called "Pedra de Santanyi" of which also beautiful buildings were made.

Vegetation on Mallorca is really Mediterranean. Plenty of pines, palm-trees, stoneoak, oleander and bouganvillea. And, of course, almond and olive-trees. Animal life is very poor on Mallorca and hardly worth mentioning.

 

 

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