Tema 2 Apuntes (Versión en inglés)

Lesson 2 Coastal landforms in Spain

The Spanish coastline

It´s about 7800 km long and it is divided into peninsular coast, Balearic and Canary Islands and Ceuta and Melilla and are surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, Cantabrian Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.

Spanish coast are made of cliffed and rocky coasts and plains with beaches. The coasts are determined by various factors:

-   The land Relief: Mountain ranges form cliffed and rocky shorelines and plains near the coast form beaches.

-   The tides: cause sand and marine deposits and form beaches.

-   Coastal Erosion: Is the breaking down of land near coasts.

The spanish coastlines

There are five different coastlines:

-   Atlantic coast of Cantabria: In the north between Francia and Cabo Ortegal.

-    Atlantic coast of Galicia: northwest between Cabo Ortegal y Portugal.

-  Atlantic coast of Andalucía: southwest between Portugal and the Estrecho de Gibraltar.

-   Mediterranean coast of Andalucía: In the Southeast between Estrecho de Gibraltar and Murcia.

-   The Eastern Mediterranean Coast: From Murcia to Francia:

-  Canary Islands are surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean and Ceuta, Melilla and Balearic Islands are surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea

The Atlantic Coastline

   - The Atlantic coast of Cantabria: formed by high rocky cliffs. There are rías and sandy beaches. Its waters are cold with strong waves. 

    -The Atlantic Coast of Galicia: Irregular coast formed by rocky cliffs. It has got deep rías. There are two kind of rías Altas (al norte del cabo Finisterre) and Bajas (al sur del cabo Finisterre).

    - The Atlantic coast of Andalucía: From the Guadiana River to the Estrecho de Gibraltar (300 km).The coast is straight and sandy (it has dunes too in Cadiz and Huelva) because it´s near the Guadalquivir depression the lowest area of Spain. 

The Mediterranean Coastline

Mediterranean coast of Andalucía

From the Estrecho de Gibraltar to the border of Andalucía and Murcia. The coast is formed by cliffs because it´s near the cordillera Penibética. Flatter zones can be found in Malaga. 

The Eastern Mediterranean coast

-   The East Coast: Its made up of the coasts of Murcia, Com. Valenciana y el Delta del Ebro. It has small deltas, saltlakes, lagoons and sandy beaches. 

-   The Catalan Coast: From the Delta del Ebro to France. Rocky sea cliffs can be found in la Costa Brava in Girona and some plains forming beaches. 

The Spanish Archipielagos

There are two archipielagos:

-  The Balearic Islands: In the Mediterranean sea and formed by five islands: Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, Formentera y Cabrera. There are mountainous reliefs. The highest peack is Puig Major in la sierra de Tramuntana. 

-   The Canary Islands: In the Atlantic ocean. It´s formed by seven islands: Tenerife, La Palma, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Santa Cruz, El Hierro y Gran Canaria. They are volcanic in origin. The highest peack is Teide. The coast is cliffed.