[4] Behind Penyal d'Ifac is a large lagoon cut off from the sea by strips of sandy beach and extending inland to the coastal mountains.

[citation needed] The park ranges from sea level to an altitude of 332 metres at the summit of the rock (penyal in Valencian, peñón in Spanish).

[4] The rock's sheer cliffs and rocky escarpments, exposed to the sea winds on three sides, have created a variety of microhabitats that have fostered a diversity of specialised plant species.

At the lowest levels, relatively deep soils with higher moisture content in areas protected from the sea have allowed the development of a typical Mediterranean scrub vegetation community including dwarf palms, juniper, lavender and white pine.

Higher up as soils become thinner and more exposed to the sun and wind alpine plant species have colonised cracks and gullies in the rock.