Wildlife of Morocco

Morocco is a country in northwestern Africa; land borders include Western Sahara in the southwest and Algeria to the south and east.

[1] The coastal plain has a Mediterranean climate but is affected by the upwelling cold Canary Current close off-shore; this gives it wet winters and warm summers.

[3] At one time Morocco formed a land bridge between Africa and Europe and as a result, the flora is very diverse; it includes about 3,900 species of plant in 981 genera and 155 families.

The most important families, together constituting over half of the species richness, are Apiaceae, Asteraceae, Brassicaceae, Caryophyllaceae, Fabaceae, Lamiaceae, Liliaceae and Poaceae.

Other genera with large numbers of endemic taxa are Ononis, Centaurea, Fumaria, Rhodanthemum, Linaria, Thymus, Astragalus, Bupleurum and Limonium.

It is found in the forests and more remote parts of the Rif, Middle, and High Atlas, as well as on the Rock of Gibraltar in extreme Southern Europe.

[8] Smaller mammals include cape hares, crested porcupines, ground squirrels, gerbils, jirds, jerboas, rats and mice.

[3] A migratory route for birds, linking Western Europe with North Africa, passes across the Strait of Gibraltar and through Morocco.

[11] Other birds with restricted ranges in north Africa include the Levaillant's woodpecker (Picus vaillantii), the Moussier's redstart (Phoenicurus moussieri) and the Tristram's warbler (Sylvia deserticola).