GERMANY

Geography: Germany fits between the Netherlands, Denmark and Poland, with coasts of the North and Baltic seas. On the West is the Belgium and French borders, while to the south is the more mountainous Swiss and Austrian border areas. Heavily populated and industrialised, Germany is not a naturalist's haven. Everything in Germany is organised with over 33% intensely cultivated, and so with not much distance between the towns, there isn't much in the way of wildlife.

Climate: Temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind.

Languages: German.

Currency: Euro.