FLORA
The
flora of the islands is equally interesting and diverse. The Galapagos
has three marked zones: the littoral zone, the arid zone, and the transition
zone. The miconia zone and fern-sedge zone are also found on the islands.
Mangroves are the main flora found in the littoral zone, where the plants
can tolerate high levels of salt.
Surprisingly,
the Galapagos is quite arid, and islands are covered with prickly pear
cacti (our land iguanas' favorite treat), the palo santo and acacias
among others. The transition zone is where we find the beautiful scalesia
tree, endemic to the islands, covered with Spanish moss, lichens and
other plants. There are hundreds of plant species and more details available
through any number of books
about the plants
of the islands.