The Faroe Islands are an archipelago between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic, about halfway between Norway and Iceland, 320 kilometres (200 miles) north-northwest of Scotland.
The islands are an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark. Their area is about 1,400 square kilometres (541 square miles) with a population of 50,030 in April 2017.
The Faroes' terrain is rugged, and the islands have a subpolar oceanic climate: windy, wet, cloudy, and cool. Despite this island group's northerly latitude, temperatures average above freezing throughout the year because of the Gulf Stream.
The bird fauna of the Faroe Islands is dominated by seabirds and birds attracted to open land. Fullmars, storm petrels, starlings, auks, guillemots, gannets and oystercatchers are represented. Yhe funny atlantic puffins breed in the islands in large numbers, notably on Mykines, and from July, after the breeding season, it is legal to catch them for food.
The natural vegetation of the Faroe Islands is dominated by arctic-alpine plants, wildflowers, grasses, moss and lichen. Most of the lowland area is grassland.
The domestic animals of the Faroe Islands are a result of 1,200 years of isolated breeding. As a result, many of the islands' domestic animals are found nowhere else in the world. Faroese domestic breed include Faroe pony, Faroe cow, Faroe sheep, Faroese goose and Faroese duck.