The Comoros is a country in the Indian Ocean, situated at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique. The country consists of three of the four main islands in the volcanic Comoros archipelago: Grande Comore, Mohéli and Anjouan. The fourth island in the island group, Mayotte, is not part of the country.

The Comorians inhabiting Grande Comore, Anjouan, and Moheli (86% of the population) share African-Arab origins. Islam is the dominant religion. Although Arab culture is firmly established throughout the archipelago, a substantial minority of the citizens of Mayotte (the Mahorais) are Catholic and have been strongly influenced by French culture. There are also substantial Indian minority., as well as Creole-speaking minorities mostly descended from Reunionnaise.

The islands possess a variety of animal life with several species unique to the Comoros or rarely found elsewhere. The famous Coelacanth, a fish once thought to be extinct for millions of years, is found very much alive in Comorian waters. Livingstone's flying fox, a giant fruit bat with a wing span over four feet, is found nowhere else in the world. Several varieties of insects, including the butterfly pictured at left, and over a dozen species of birds are unique to the islands. Many of these species are now being threatened with extinction.