The Macaronesia

Macaronesia is a (bio) geographical region made up of the Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores, Madeira, Savage and Canary Islands, and Cape Verde. From a biological perspective, however, it also includes a coastal stretch of Northwest Africa close to the Canaries (known as the continental ‘Macaronesian enclave’) because it is largely similar to the islands, especially where flora is concerned. The significant latitudinal difference between the various groups of islands results in considerable disparities between the outer limits of the region (the Azores and Cape Verde), while ‘Central Macaronesia’ (Madeira, the Savage and Canary Islands) shares many more similarities. The term ‘Lauri-Macaronesia’ is also used when referring to the three northernmost archipelagos (the Azores, Madeira and the Canaries), where laurisilva laurel or evergreen forests grow. Another term, ‘Thermo-Macaronesia’, has been proposed for Madeira, the Canaries and Cape Verde, where thermophile woodland is found.
The term Macaronesia derives from two Greek words makaron, which means blessed or fortunate, and nesoi, which means island or group of islands. A complete translation would be Blessed or Fortunate Islands. This terminology was used for the first time by botanists, specifically Philip Barker Webb, in the mid-19th century, and since then has spread to other fields that have little to do with science.
The Atlantic is a relatively young ocean that exerts its influence on Macaronesia through two factors: the Azores High (also known as the Azores anticyclone) and the Gulf Stream. The Canary Current is a branch of the Azores Current and flows in direction south-southwest, transporting cold waters from the north. The Canary Current and the northeast trade winds that regularly blow throughout the year are largely responsible for maintaining mild climatic conditions in the northernmost archipelagos. This is true for the Canaries, whose subtropical location and proximity to the Sahara, the world’s largest desert, could have a far more arid climate.
The upwelling is a peculiar phenomenon that occurs when water rises from the depths of the ocean along the African coast. These nutrient-rich waters fill the void left by the surface waters driven westwards and away from the coast by the trade winds that blow constantly and intensely in certain months of the year. Along the continental shelf these nutrient-rich waters generate fishing grounds of great economic importance. Recent studies have demonstrated the effects of this upwelling on marine life, specifically in the Canaries, where filaments reach some islands (even the westernmost island of El Hierro) in certain months of the year. These filaments transport the larvae of species that are of particular interest to fishing and have considerable impact on local fisheries.
Several types of water masses coexist in the Atlantic Ocean, each with different values of density, temperature and salinity, and located at different bathymetric levels, depending on latitude and longitude. Particularly interesting is the existence of several seamounts, once above sea level, including La Concepción, Dacia, Anike, Ampare and Unicorn.