Geography of Anguilla


Anguilla is an island in the Leeward Islands. It has numerous bays, including Barnes, Little, Rendezvous, Shoal, and Road Bays.

Statistics

Location: Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, east of Puerto Rico
Geographic coordinates: 18°15′ N, 63°10′ W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
  • total:
  • land:
  • water:
Area – comparative: about half the size of Washington, D.C.
Coastline: 61 km
Maritime claims:
  • exclusive fishing zone:
  • territorial sea:
Climate: tropical moderated by northeast trade winds
Terrain: flat and low-lying island of coral and limestone
Elevation extremes:
  • lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
  • highest point: Crocus Hill 73 m
Natural resources: salt, fish, lobster
Land use:
  • arable land: 0%
  • permanent crops: 0%
  • permanent pastures: 0%
  • forests and woodland: 61.1%
  • other: 38.9%
Natural hazards: frequent hurricanes and other tropical
storms
Environment – current issues: supplies of potable water
sometimes cannot meet increasing demand largely because of poor distribution system.

Islands and cays

The territory of Anguilla consists of the island of Anguilla itself, as well as numerous other islands and cays, most of which are very small and uninhabited. These include:

Districts

Anguilla is divided into fourteen districts:
DistrictPopulation
Blowing Point825
East End661
George Hill1124
Island Harbour963
North Hill444
North Side1514
Sandy Ground252
Sandy Hill633
South Hill1689
Stoney Ground1577
The Farrington629
The Quarter1079
The Valley1298
West End884

Climate

Anguilla features a tropical wet and dry climate under the Köppen climate classification. The island has a rather dry climate, moderated by northeast trade winds. Temperatures vary little throughout the year. Average daily maxima range from about in December to in July. With no mountains to slow or trap clouds, rainfall is erratic, averaging about per year, the wettest months being September and October, and the driest February and March. Anguilla is vulnerable to hurricanes from June to November, peak season August to mid-October.
The island suffered damage from Hurricane Luis in 1995, severe flooding of from Hurricane Lenny in 1999 and severe damage from Hurricane Irma in 2017, which remains the most powerful hurricane to hit the island.

Vegetation

Anguilla's coral and limestone terrain provide no subsistence possibilities for forests, woodland, pastures, crops, or arable lands. Its dry climate and thin soil hamper commercial agricultural development. In Anguilla forest cover is around 61% of the total land area, equivalent to 5,500 hectares of forest in 2020, which was unchanged from 1990.