The Botany of Iceland - 01.12.1942, Blaðsíða 17

THE PTERIDOPHYTA AND SPERMATOPHYTA OF ICELAND
1930. H. Molholrn Hansen, Studies on the Vegetation of Iceland.—Botany of Ice-
land. III, 1. Copenhagen.
1934. C. H. Ostenfeld and Johs. Gröntved, The Flora of Iceland and the Færoes.
Copenhagen & London.
1936. Steindór Steindórsson, Om Vegetationen paa Melrakkasljetta i det nordost-
lige Island.—Botan. Tidsskr. 43. Bd. (p. 436—483).
1940. — Bidrag til Nordvest-Islands Flora. Ibid. 45. Bd. (p. 166—179).
T opography.
The Topography of Iceland has already been exhaustively dealt
with by Th. Thoroddsen (Botany of Iceland I, p. 187—343) it will,
therefore, be unnecessary to give an extensive description of the country
here, but for the reader who has no access to Thoroddsen’s paper a
brief survey of the geography of Iceland will be of some interest.
Iceland is situated in the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean. To
the North-West the island is separated from Greenland by the 300 km
broad Denmark Strait. Towards the East the distance to the Norwegian
west coast is 970 km, to the South-East the distance to the Færoe
Archipelago is about 420 km, and to Scotland about 800 km. To the
North the Jan Mayen group of islands is 550 km distant.
From East to West the mainland measures 490 km (between Gerpir
and Öndverðarnes), and from South to North there are 312 km (be-
tween Dyrhólaey and Siglunes). The westernmost point of Iceland is
Látrabjarg (24° 32' W. of Greenwich), the easternmost point is Hval-
bakur (13° 16' W.). The southemmost point is Geirfuglasker (63° 19'
Lat. N.), and the northemmost Kolbeinsey (67° 7' 30" Lat. N.)1. The
Arctic Circle touches the north-eastern part of the mainland, and also
passes over the small islet Grímsey off the north coast, in long. 18° W.
The coast is much indented in the N., E. and W., partly with large
bays, especially on the north and west coasts, partly with fiords, often
long and narrow, especially on the east coast and on the large north-
western peninsula Vestfirðir. The latter is only connected with the
mainland by a 7 km broad neck of land, between Breiðifjörður and
Húnaflói.
The south coast is without deep indentations, but in the coastal area
there are several larger and smaller lagoons, chiefly at the mouths of
the larger glacier rivers. This is especially the case where the rivers in
their lower courses are dammed up by banks thrown up by the surf.
1 After Árbók Hagstófu íslands 1930, Reykjavík, p. 1.