South East Asian Trips

An archipelago makes up the country of the Philippines consisting of 7107 islands, stretching all the way from close to Taiwan (in the north) to Borneo (in the south). Lying between the Pacific Ocean (to the east) and Indochina on the west, the Philippines are composed of three main groups of islands: Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao. The largest of these, and the northernmost, is Luzon, while the second largest is Mindanao. The bulk of the islands- around 6000 tiny little bits of land scattered between Luzon and Mindanao- comprise the Visayan region.

Much of the Philippines lies within the Pacific 'Ring of Fire' and is highly seismic. There are 37 volcanoes on the islands, which have a number of non-volcanic mountains too; the highest is Mt Apo, 2954m, in Mindanao. The country is one of the greenest in this part of the world- about a third of the land area is still forested. However, the Philippines have had their share of environmental problems- deforestation and shifting agriculture, along with air and water pollution - the latter especially along the mangrove swamps in coastal areas, are some of the main issues.

Flora and Fauna

With the Philippines' topographical and climatic diversity, it's hardly a surprise that it also has a rich and varied flora and fauna. Nearly a third of the land is still covered by dense tropical forests, with more than 10,000 species of hardwoods, palms, bamboos, shrubs, ferns and a wide variety of flowering plants, the orchids are particularly beautiful.

The country also has a lot of interesting- and spectacular- wildlife. You'll find some very unusual forms of animal life here, from scaly anteaters and white parrots to purple herons and flying squirrels and the famous Philippine Eagle. The coastal areas invariably have a lot of variety as far as marine life is concerned- both on shore and underwater. Rare species include the great sea turtles of Palawan.