Cuban Environment

Cuba is the Caribbean's largest and least commercialised island and one of the world's last bastions of communism. Its relative political isolation has prevented it from being overrun by tourists, and locals are sincerely friendly to those who do venture in.

See striking mountains, valleys and rivers of Pinar del Rio province. Explore Cuba's enormous cave system, with spectacular rivers and grottos. Sail our yacht through crystalline turquoise waters and relax on brilliant white sand beaches of the island cayes in the southern Archipelago de Los Canarreos.

 

Climate

 

 

 

Land

Much of Cuba is made up of fertile flatlands, where cattle are grazed and sugarcane, coffee and tobacco are grown. The Oriental, Central and Occidental mountain ranges cover 25% of the country, the highest point being Pico Turquino (1972m). Cuba's longest river is the 343km Río Cauto, although it's barely navigable, even for small boats. The North American and Caribbean tectonic plates meet in the 7200m deep Cayman Trench between Jamaica and Cuba, and the region is thus prone to earthquakes.

 

Animals and Plants

 

There are more than 6000 plant species in Cuba, around half of which are endemic. The ever-present royal palm ( Reistonea regia ) is represented on the country's coat of arms; there are said to be 20 million palms in Cuba. Cuba's other flora includes the rare and prehistoric cork palm ( Microcycas calocoma ), a throwback to the Cretaceous Period; the jagüey , a fig with aerial roots; the palma barrigona (big belly palm); the ceiba (the sacred silk-cotton tree), and the mariposa (butterfly jasmine), the white national flower. Much of the southern coast has mangrove swamps that support small fish and birdlife while the majority of the northern coast is bordered by rugged beaches.

 

Cuba's most abundant land fauna is reptilian and includes crocodiles, iguanas, lizards, salamanders, turtles and 15 species of nonpoisonous snakes. The largest land mammal is the jutía ( Capromys ), a tree rat which grows to about 60cm in length. The world's smallest bird comes from Cuba: the bee hummingbird, or zunzuncito ( Mellisuga helenae ), is just bigger than a grasshopper and weighs only two grams. The tocororo ( Priotelus temnuros ) is dubbed Cuba's national bird due to its red, white and blue plumage - the colors of the Cuban flag.

 

Cuba 's varied climates enable over 3,000 species of tropical fruits and flowers to inhabit the island. Extensive tracts of land in the eastern portion of the island are heavily forested. The most predominant species of trees are palms, of which Cuba has more than 30 types, including royal palms. Other indigenous plants are mahogany, ebony, lignum vitae, cottonwood, logwood, rosewood, cedar pine, majagua, granadilla, jagüey, tobacco, papaya trees, and the ceiba, which is the national tree.

 

 

 

 

 

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