“A tiny island - unique in the world of flora and fauna”
Tobago owes its unique and beautiful landscape to the Ice Age when the sea level fell by over 100 metres isolating Tobago (together with sister island Trinidad) from the South American mainland to which it was formerly attached. Many of the plants and animals retained from the South American continent have created such a diversity of magnificent flora and fauna quite disproportionate to the size of this tiny island of Tobago! With the flowing together of the warm Caribbean sea and the Orinoco river, together with the cool North Atlantic currents, calm and clear coastal waters have been created and are rich in incredible marine life - over 500 species and coral reefs, the best in the world. Five species of endangered sea turtle including the giant Leatherback, nest on Tobago’s coast.

With Tobago’s geographical location it is also the ideal “stopping point” for Northern or Southern migratory birds and butterflies. 260 species of birds breed in Tobago and Trinidad and over 150 species migrate here from North and South America. Over 430 species of birds and over 600 species of butterflies have been recorded in Tobago and its sister island Trinidad. There are also a vast variety of trees, orchids, shrubs while other interesting creatures and other wildlife abound. There are four distinct habitat locations namely – the Woodlands fringing the coast, the Tropical Deciduous Forests, the Evergreen Rain Forest covering Tobago’s mountain range and the Mangrove Swamp in its Wetlands.

A Law passed on April 13th 1776 when the Colonial Governor of Tobago, a foresighted conservationist, declared the Central mountain ridge and its surrounding lands a Crown Reserve, thus securing the future and safety of this region and making it the oldest legally-protected forest in the world.

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