Grenada

Grenada is a West Indian Island nation. Located in the eastern Caribbean Sea, about 160 km north of the coast of Venezuela, it is the southernmost island of the north-south arc of the Lesser Antilles. The island has an oval shape and is approximately 34 km in length and 19 km in width. The southern Grenadines are a dependency. The largest of these is Carriacou, about 32 km north-northeast, with an area of 34 square kilometers. Its capital, St. George’s, on its south-western coast, has a fine natural port and its quaint pastel houses tower up from its shore. Once the home of island schooners, the waterfront itself is known as the Carenage. In addition, St. George's is the Eastern Caribbean's yachting and charter center. The island is of volcanic origin, with a north-south mountain ridge, steeper in the west and more gradual in the east and southeast. The highest point is Mount St. Catherine, which rises to 840 meters above sea level in the northern part of the country. There are about 4,000 hectares of forest and the landscape is very picturesque with fairly deep, steep-sided valleys. The island has a lush vegetation with an all-season growing season and a wide variety of tropical fruits, blooming shrubs and ferns. Teak, mahogany, saman and blue mahoe forests are also found inland. Wildlife is diverse and includes wild animals such as Mona Monkeys, manicou, agouti, iguanas, mongooses, and a range of turtles and land crabs. Like much of the rest of the Caribbean, Grenada is devoid of large animals. But it does boast a rich avifauna of 184 bird species, with one endemic, the Grenada Dove, six introduced, and 116 rare or accidental.