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What Everybody Is Saying About Jura Canada

By Iva Cannon


Situated off the northern coast of Scotland are two clusters of islands, or archipelagos. These are the Inner and Outer Hebrides. Among the inner chain of islands are Mull, Islay, Skye, Coll and Jura, which some people confuse with Jura Canada. Both chains of islands enjoy what has been described as a mild oceanic climate with warm summers, cool winters and no discernible dry season.

Of the largest islands in the Inner Hebrides, the one with the most people is Skye, with a population of approximately 10,000 people. Next, come Islay and Mull, with 3,228 and 2,800 people, respectively. The smallest of the Inner Hebridean chain, Rum, has a population of only 22 people. The remaining islands host between 83 (Eigg) and 653 (Tiree) people. A fair amount of coastline is described as low-lying, fertile dune pastureland called machair.

The main commercial interests of the Inner Hebrides include whisky distilling, tourism, crofting and fishing. Crofting refers to farming a small area of land. The main whisky distilling islands are Islay, Skye, Mull and Jura. These islands are heavily dependent on micro-businesses and self-employment.

As regards the Outer Hebrides, although they are often considered as one island, Harris and Lewis are separate islands connected by a thin isthmus. The population of Lewis and Harris is just over 21,000. There are a total of 15 islands in the Outer Hebrides, of which the four islands with the next largest populations to Lewis and Harris are Barraigh, Barbencula, North Uist, and South Uist. The remaining ten islands have population distributions between 10 and 300.

People in the Outer Hebrides make their living the same way as those on the inner islands, with the addition of weaving. The world-famous fabric, Harris tweed, is made here. Every aspect from start to finish, carding, dying, weaving, blending, warping, finishing and inspecting are all done on the islands.

The Jura Mountains, on the other hand, are a sub-alpine mountain range located in France, Switzerland and parts of Germany. The name comes from the Celtic word for forest. This particular mountain chain is known as a sub-alpine mountain range. The term sub-alpine refers to the biotic zone directly beneath the tree line, which, in Scotland, goes as low as 1,500 feet. Species of flora and fauna that flourish in sub-alpine zones vary with the location of the region.

The Sumatran Montane Rainforest is another example of a sub-alpine forest, only much, much higher up than the Jura Mountains. Here, in Southeast Asia, the tree line goes up to 15,000 feet. Some of the most impressive plant species dwell here, such as Amorphophallus titanum, the stalks of which grow up to two metres. The largest flowering plant in the world is also here, Rafflesia arnoldii, with blossoms a full metre in width.

Among the notable animal species dwelling in the Sumatran Montane Rainforests are some of the most endangered species in the region: the Sumatran tiger, rhinoceros and the Sumatran rabbit. The biodiversity of the Sumatran region is a reflection of its geologic history. Approximately 150 million years ago, Borneo, Sumatra and Sulawesi split off from the super-continent of Gondwanaland. This land mass drifted north until 70 million years ago, when it slammed into India to form the Himalayas.




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