Hlenderia: Difference between revisions
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==Geography and climate== |
==Geography and climate== |
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[[File:Oramin Mountains |
[[File:Western Oramin Mountains.jpg|right|200px|thumb|The western slopes of the Oramin Mountains in the autumn.]] |
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Hlenderia comprises the majority of the island of Hayaneste in southern Gondwana, except for the neighboring country of [[Joralesia]] in the northwest. Most of Hlenderia is sparsely populated. The most populous region is the western coast, followed by the northern region around the city of Norrith, near the Joralesian border. |
Hlenderia comprises the majority of the island of Hayaneste in southern Gondwana, except for the neighboring country of [[Joralesia]] in the northwest. Most of Hlenderia is sparsely populated. The most populous region is the western coast, followed by the northern region around the city of Norrith, near the Joralesian border. |
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The western coast region has a relatively warm, oceanic climate with fertile soils watered by storm systems that are fed by sea winds |
The western coast region has a relatively warm, oceanic climate with fertile soils watered by storm systems that are fed by sea winds. In the southwest, deciduous and mixed-leaf temperate forest predominates. In the northwest - the most populous region in Hlenderia - much of this primeval forest has been cleared to make way for agriculture. This northwestern region, called the "breadbasket of Hlenderia", feeds much of the country and produces food for export to Joralesia and mainland Gondwana. |
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The interior of Hlenderia is marked by conifer forests and taiga, with the rain shadow to the east of the Oramin Mountains dominated by bogs, muskeg, and fens. This taiga, known as the "Great Woods" locally, is mostly pine, fir, and spruce. Each of these species are economically important, but Hlenderia's pine forests are especially highly logged for use in inexpensive furniture. The growing season in the interior is short each year, but agriculture is performed on a subsistence basis by Kwari and Mūni bands in the northern taiga. |
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| ⚫ | The Oramin Mountains are the source of over 850 rivers in Hlenderia, the longest and widest being the River Pela that runs east and passes through the nation's capital of Pelachis. Nearly 35,000 ponds and lakes, many of them unnamed in the vast interior, also provide fresh water. This range, considered holy in the local Hlenderian religion, run north to south along the western half of the island, with the smaller "Little Oramin" or "Oramin's Highway" range branching off and stretching eastward through central Hayaneste. |
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[[File: |
[[File:Oramin Mountains Bog.jpg|left|200px|thumb|A bog located in the eastern shadow of the Oramin Mountains, typical of the region.]] |
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The southeastern part of the country - the closest land mass to Sempiterna - consists of tundra. This portion of Hlenderia, which consists entirely of Mūni territory, is the least developed. Of particular concern in modern times is the melting of permafrost here by climate change, which results in the release of trapped carbon and affects the traditional lifestyle of the Hlenderians residing here. |
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| ⚫ | In central-western Hlenderia, the Oramin Mountains Religious Preserve is set aside for local religious use and forbidden to logging or development. The forest here is a fine example of old-growth taiga, and on the middle slopes [[Wikipedia:drunken forest|drunken forest]] predominates, the result of |
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| ⚫ | The Oramin Mountains are the source of over 850 rivers in Hlenderia, the longest and widest being the River Pela that runs east and passes through the nation's capital of Pelachis. Nearly 35,000 ponds and lakes, many of them unnamed in the vast interior, also provide fresh water. This range, considered holy in the local Hlenderian religion, run north to south along the western half of the island, with the smaller "Little Oramin" or "Oramin's Highway" range branching off and stretching eastward through central Hayaneste. This range also provides a natural border between the western Vrotrim people and the Kwarim and Mūnim east of it. A few passes allow travel through the mountains, and [[Hlenderian Highway One]] is the most traveled paved corridor through the region. |
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[[File:Hlenderian Tundra.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Tundra in southeastern Hlenderia, with abandoned Mūni hunting shacks.]] |
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| ⚫ | In central-western Hlenderia, the Oramin Mountains Religious Preserve is set aside for local religious use and forbidden to logging or development. The forest here is a fine example of old-growth taiga, and on the middle slopes [[Wikipedia:drunken forest|drunken forest]] predominates, the result of permafrost now melted by climate change. |
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===Flora and fauna=== |
===Flora and fauna=== |
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Along the coast, bird life such as gulls and albatrosses, cormorants, herons, and penguins are commonly seen. In the interior, birds of prey such as owls, falcons, and eagles have long been seen as sacred by the Kwarim and Mūnim. The fen-grouse, a large ground bird and Hlenderia's national animal, lives in the fens, bogs, and forests of the interior and is a common sight. In its breeding season, male fen-grouse can be highly aggressive. Passerines are also common throughout the island. In the southeastern tundra, penguins and terns comprise the majority of avian life. |
Along the coast, bird life such as gulls and albatrosses, cormorants, herons, and penguins are commonly seen. In the interior, birds of prey such as owls, falcons, and eagles have long been seen as sacred by the Kwarim and Mūnim. The fen-grouse, a large ground bird and Hlenderia's national animal, lives in the fens, bogs, and forests of the interior and is a common sight. In its breeding season, male fen-grouse can be highly aggressive. Passerines are also common throughout the island. In the southeastern tundra, penguins and terns comprise the majority of avian life. |
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[[File:Western Oramin Mountains.jpg|right|200px|thumb|The western slopes of the Oramin Mountains in the autumn.]] |
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The large land wildlife includes deer, moose, muskox in the southeast, caribou and bears. The large Hayaneste brown bear is sacred in the Hlenderian religion. The medium-sized land wildlife includes foxes, wolves, jackals, etc. The small animals seen most commonly include squirrels, hare, groundhogs, raccoons, chipmunks, and beavers. |
The large land wildlife includes deer, moose, muskox in the southeast, caribou and bears. The large Hayaneste brown bear is sacred in the Hlenderian religion. The medium-sized land wildlife includes foxes, wolves, jackals, etc. The small animals seen most commonly include squirrels, hare, groundhogs, raccoons, chipmunks, and beavers. |
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