Flora & fauna of Maldives

Maldives offers many brilliant sights to the nature lovers. The flora and fauna of Maldives present an array of vibrant colors and liveliness found in an island.

Flora

Surrounded on all sides by sea, Maldives is lined with the growth of the Banyan, Breadfruit, Coconut Palms, Screwpines and other vegetation. The national tree of Maldives is the Coconut Palm. Due to the presence of the corals and their salinity, there are no dense forests. The Almond trees can be found in larger islands while the mangroves are seen the inland waters. There are around 20 species of grass and sedge found all along the coastline of Maldives.

The Calophyllum, Cordian subcordata (kaani), Hermandia nymphaeifolia (kandoo), Hibiscus tiliaceus (dhigaa), Terminalia cattappa (midhili) and Thespesia populnea are the local variety of timber grown for local consumption. The tallest tree found in Maldives is the Banyan (Ficus benghalensis). These are both found in wild as well grown in the gardens. The large fast-growing evergreen plant, Casuarinas (Casuarina equisetifolia) protects weaker plants from the damaging effects of the sea spray. They are being promoted by the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture for this purpose.

Among the vegetation, Gourd, Green Chilies, Onions and Pumpkins are grown in the island. Roots such as Cassava, Sweet Potatoes, Taro and Yam are cultivated. Cereals like the Maize and Millet are also grown for local consumption. The fruits commonly grown in Maldives are the Banana, Custard Apple, Jujubes, Lime, Mango, Papaya, Pineapple and Water Melon.

Fauna

There is no dearth of fauna in Maldives from the most common land animals to exotic marine life. The corals of Maldives are abundant with all sorts of underwater life. Maldives have more than 700 species of fish including Skipjack or Maldives Fish, Dogtooth Tuna, Butterfly Fish, Sweetlips and Fusilier. The marine life includes crabs, hawksbill, mollusks, planktons, scorpion fish, sharks and turtles. 

The domestic species found in Maldives are the Cat and Goat. The other animals are the Rat, Fox and Tree Shrew. The reptiles include Lizards and Scorpions while the insects found are Butterfly, Paper Wasp and Rhinoceros Wasps. 

Maldives is inhabited by almost 100 species of birds out of which a fifth of them are resident and the rest are migratory birds. The sea birds such as Gull and Tern are found the most in Maldives, Noddy Tern, Fairy Tern and White Tern being the most common. Other among avifauna is the Crow, Grey Heron, Kestrel, Koel, Plover, Rose-Ringed Parakeet, Sandpiper, Snipe and White-Breasted Water Hen.