Discover Trinidad & Tobago 2016 — 25th Anniversary Edition

Sightseeing \
& more
Trinidad’s natural history
Trinidad owes its phenomenal diversity of
flora, fauna and topography to a combination
of Caribbean and South American
characteristics (the island was originally
connected to the mainland).
The result is a unique mix of island and
continental ecology, a distinctive legacy
that is visible all around — mountain ranges
(the northern, central and southern)
cloaked in tropical rainforest; mangrove
swamps; savannahs; waterfalls and rivers;
and distinct coastal waters that are sometimes
jungle green, aqua blue, and deep,
dark blue, washed by the nutrient-rich waters
of Venezuela’s Orinoco River.
There are coral reefs off the northwest and
northeast coasts, with rocky, windy islands
off the Chaguaramas peninsula, featuring
coves, caves and beaches. Caroni (on the
west coast) and Nariva (in the southeast)
are the two main swamps.
Biodiversity in a nutshell
Trinidad is said to have some of the
greatest biodiversity per square mile
in the world. This includes:
2,100+ flowering plant species
(almost 200 are orchids)
370 species of trees (including
native purpleheart, mora and
crappo)
400+ bird species (more than
any other Caribbean island)
600+ butterfly species
400+ marine fish and 40+ freshwater
fish
100+ recorded mammal species
(over 60 of them bats)
90+ species of reptiles (including
40+ species of snake)
30+ amphibian species.
A young hummingbird feeding.
Photo by Chris Anderson
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