The differences between the two sides of the Basque Country logically extend to cover also the existing flora, with plants of general Euro Siberian distribution being predominant in the north whereas those of Mediterranean distribution dominate the panorama in the south. The European corologic element extends itself throughout the Iberian peninsula and is well represented in the Cantabrian Cornice. Together with Central European plants, situated in the least cold area with the most rainfall, near the coast, there is also another particular element, the Atlantic element. In the other extreme, the Ebro river valley acts as an important thoroughfare for penetration and settlement by Mediterranean species and, although it is situated in their northern limit, the Basque Country accumulates a considerable part of the plants that are characteristic of coastal Mediterranean areas. However, the frontier between both reigns is not always well-defined. There are paradoxical cases like that of the Cantabrian holm oaks or the Macaronesic ferns, that are relics of past times with climates that were different from what we have now. As refers to endemisms, although there is no lack of examples in more or less stabilised genders: Arenaria vitoriana, Armeria euskadiensis, Geranium endressii, Saxifraga hariotii, etc., they are especially frequent in those groups that have a greater evolution activity, like Alchemilla, Hieracium, Rubus, Taraxacum, etc. In 1999 the detailed study on the "Flora of the Basque Country and neighbouring territories" was carried out, including a catalogue of currently known species in these areas together with an illustrated key for identification purposes. The total number of 3063 species have been identified, grouped in 873 genders and 158 different families.

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