Far from being lush, tropical islands of coconut palms and ferns, like others in the Pacific, much of the Galapagos is dry, desert-like and covered with cactus. Formed from the tips of submerged volcanoes, and never joined to the mainland, it hosts a plant life which has developed according to the ability of seeds to survive winds and waves and the curious microclimates of the islands. Lack of suitable terrain and absence of pollinating insects limits the number of some plant species, such as orchids, of which there are only 11 species on the archipelago, compared with over 3,000 on the mainland. At the same time, many unique species flourish on the islands because they adapted to the harsh conditions. The oppuntia cactus, for example, with its pretty yellow flowers, is unique to the archipelago and is also the most common cactus.

Including subspecies and varieties, some 900 plants have been recorded on the archipelago, of which a quarter are endemic, and another quarter introduced by man. For classification purposes, the archipelago is usually divided into seven vegetation zones.

The sea level Coastal Zone is home to salt-tolerant plants such as mangroves and saltbush.

The Arid Zone, 80–120 m [270–400 ft] above sea level, hosts the ghostly and ubiquitous, gray-barked palo santo tree, which has leaves only in wet season, as well as plentiful acacia, various thorny plants and cacti.

Slight rainfall in the Transition Zone, up to 100–200 m [330–660 ft] in elevation, makes for richer vegetation, including perennial herbs and the Zone’s characteristic plant, the pega pega, or “stick stick” tree, so named because its leaves stick to your fingers.

During the dry season, from June to September, a thick fog, or garuha, creates a moist cloud forest in the Scalesia Zone, up to 500 m [1,667 ft], which is named after the ubiquitous and endemic scalesia tree. Growing to a height of 10 m [33 ft], this beautiful “sunflower” tree has white, daisy-like flowers and is usually covered with mosses, vines and bromeliads. Scalesias are also common in the Brown zone, named after the color of the moss which forms on the tree’s branches at altitudes of around 500 m [1,667 ft].

Above this level is the Miconia Zone, named after leafy miconia bushes, up to four meters [12 ft] tall, with pink or violet flowering heads. Vegetables, coffee and fruit are grown in this belt.

At the top level, from about 650 m [2,167 ft] to the peaks of the island’s volcanoes, the tallest being over 1,600 m [5,333 ft], is the Pampa Zone. Ferns, grasses and sedges grow in this high and misty climate but there are few trees except the giant Galapagos fern tree.

|Article contributed by Dominic Hamilton|||

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