Florida



Florida


Geography


a state in the South-East



capital: Tallahassee

borders:          in the North: Alabama and Georgia

in the East: the Atlantic

in the West: Golf of Mexico

the peninsula Florida has an area of 170 313 km²

highest spot is 105 m over sea level at the border to Alabama

coastline: 2173 km

from every point in florida - only 100 km to next coast

Florida is a part of the atlantic coastplaine

the ground consists of limestone- and sandstonelayer

because of wear of waves, wind and rain Florida is mainly flatland

only forur big rivers - all in the northern of Florida:

the Apalachicola, Suwannee, St. John and the Escambia

there much rivers more but most of thembe caused by break out the earth surface - and so some rivers can be flow for a strech underground

in the North you can find more than thousand springs, bacause of the pressure in the ground

region round Tallahassee is flatland with pineforest

western from it: the Marianna lowplain with one special: mussellinelayer

around the altlanticcoast are coral reefs, bays, sand dunes, peninsulas and islands situated

in the South are the Florida Keys, the Marquese Keys and Dry Tortugas, which are thousand little island along the coast

in the East of te Keys is the last living coral reef

the biggest lake is the Okeechobee, wich is called "Big Water"

- es ist der drittgrößte Süßwassersee in den USA

-

even you find swampland like the Everglades and the Big Cypress Garden

it´s about 6000 km²

most is entwässert to field or land for new buildings and projects


Climate


in most regions of Florida is subtropical climate

the southsummit and especially the little southern islands have chance humide climate

annual average temperatre:   in the North-West round Tallahessee: 20°C

in the South-East round Fort Lauderale 25°C

Above all in the South of Florida are hurricans

Like in 1992: 41 people were killed and 160 000 homeless when hurrican Andrew came

material damage amount to 20 billion Dollar






Nature/Animals


35 % from the whole area are covered up with forest

in Florida you can find 314 different kind of trees

most native are famous because her ricness of colours

symbolflower: orangeflower

tree of the state: Sabaspalm

in the North:  pines, tuliptrees, maple trees, Azaleen, Oleander, Hibiskus and Jasmin

in the centre:  cypresses, Florida Hickories, oak trees and Magnolien

in the South:  cocopalm, kingspalm, liveoaktrees, west-indish mahogony and especially at the coast cabbagepalm

in the swampland and the Everglades:  fern, orchid, Lianen

animals:

most animals are extinct, live in danger or are disappeared

like 90 % of the birds..but still live more than 400 kinds

fisheagle, storcks, gooses, beachrunner, pelicans, seagulls and migratories

also wild animals who live in danger like: blackbears, greyfoxes, panther and another kind of wildcats

because of their skin many otters and minks were killed

in a big number live deers, squirrels, wils boar, oppossum, hares and Waschbären

nearly extinct: Seekuh and turtle

alligators on crocodiles live reserve in the Everglades

former their skin was process to textilies too

in the waters live round 700 different kinds if fish like trout and werch

but next to them you even can find frogs, lizards, rattlesnakes, and many other kinds of snakes


Economy and Industry


Floridas most important row materials are lime, crude oil and phosphat the state meet the demand for the USA with 80 %

more woe materials: natural gas, sulpur and other chemical stuffs

the most important deliver for products of agriculture lemonfruits and oranges

the industry process things for electric, automobiles and precisionintruments


Population, Education and Culture


13 Mio inhabitants

average population density: 76 people / km²

80 % whites, 10 % blacks, 10 % Hispanics

nearly 35000 Indians and 31000 people from Asia and Cuba

share of persond above 60 years is 18 % - that is ecause Florida is the popular state for old people

altogether 95 colleges and university with nearly 480 000 students

state highschools and universities: University Florida, the Bethune-Cookman College (found 1904) in Daytona Beach, the Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton and the University of Jacksonville

a significant museum: the Museum of Natural History in Gainesville which posses archaeology discoveries

an important collection of european and american painting you can find in the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota