Exceptional biodiversity
All the explorers who approached Martinique said they were as fascinated by the enchanting vegetation of the island as they were frightened by its untamable nature. This abundance of vegetation has largely contributed to the birth of the myth of “Madinina, the island of flowers”.
At the center of the archipelago of the Lesser Antilles, Martinique is home to an exceptional natural heritage shaped by volcanic activity and population movements. A unique biodiversity, marked by a diversity of species, both local and established, but which remains fragile.
Due to its exceptionally rich ecosystems, Martinique is classified among the 36 hotspots in the world because it hosts numerous animal and plant species.
On a limited surface (70 km long and 12 to 30 km wide), Martinique shelters a natural kaleidoscope which varies according to the relief, the winds, the rainfall and the temperatures. There are high mountains with altitudinal savannas; humid forests (characterized by abundant rainfall); plains and agricultural meadows; low-lying hills; white sand or black sand beaches; mangroves, these famous flooded forests which are fragile ecosystems of capital importance because they are reservoirs of biodiversity and shelter habitats for numerous species which come to feed and reproduce there.
The Flower Island myth
There are nearly 3,000 plant species in Martinique, including: 1,500 native plants, 442 trees, 323 species of ferns, 202 orchid taxa.
A luxuriant vegetation. The topography of the island and the tropical climate a favorable to luxuriant vegetation. Bougainvilleas, flamboyant plants, golden trumpets (funnel-shaped flowers, yellow and golden or pink, native to Central and South America), canna lilies (the emblem of the island with its superb orange-red flowers), anthuriums, hibiscus (Martinique has more than 150 species!), begonias, West Indian jasmine (with yellow flowers), birds of paradise, orchids of all kinds, torch ginger or shell ginger (a tropical herbaceous plant with red, pink or white flowers)… There are also more than 200 families of flowering plants in Martinique, not to mention flowerless plants, which are also very numerous: algae, lichens, mosses, ferns and mushrooms.
This diversity can be explained by history. After having tried in vain to acclimatize tropical species in Europe, botanists understood that Martinique could, on the other hand, become the breeding ground for precious plants collected throughout the world. The vegetation of the island is very diversified.
Under the canopy of tall tropical trees that filter the light, begonias and ferns carpet the ground. Higher up, the magnificent Heliconia caribaea with their large ribboned leaves have huge, richly colored flowers, unique in the plant world. Here, they are produced in large quantities for local sale and especially for export to the great French and American floral art workshops. Torch ginger, with its pinkish waxy petals and large rigid stems, is also a favorite of florists. Tiny plots of land, constantly reclaimed from the forest, are planted with anthuriums with red, pink or white flowers.
This exceptional diversity of Martinique's flora can be explained by the singular geological history of the Lesser Antilles. The plants were easily transported by the winds, birds and sea currents, in the form of seeds or driftwood (parts of trees) that would have drifted from the coasts of South America. Martinique, being located in the heart of the Lesser Antilles archipelago, has benefited in priority from these plant contributions from America and the Greater Antilles. But most of them have been introduced through population movements, by Native Americans, Europeans, Africans, Indians… Some of them have become so well established that they are now characteristic of the Martinique landscape. This is the case of the flamboyant tree, which came from Madagascar, as well as the traveler's tree, the bougainvillea, originating from Brazil, and of course many palm trees, such as the coconut tree, of Asian origin. As for the breadfruit tree, it was imported from Tahiti at the end of the 18th century by the British. The same is true for fruits and vegetables. Thus, the avocado tree, the cocoa tree, the calabash tree, the manioc, the guava tree, the mango tree or the papaya tree were brought by the Native Americans. Banana and sugar cane were brought to Martinique by European settlers.
Forests
Covering more than half of the island's surface, forests are omnipresent in Martinique.
They are one of the major assets of the island, favoring the emergence of a green tourism in full development. Their diversity makes them a valuable object of study for scientists and a source of wonder for tourists. Leave the beach to enter the woods and discover the splendor of the hundred-year-old trees, the richness of colors and scents, the waterfalls hidden in the cliffs and the trees dripping with epiphytes… The most important forest of Martinique is the one covering the massifs of Mount Pelée, the Pitons du Carbet and Morne-Jacob. Martinique has several types of forests:
the dry xerophilous forest on the low slopes of the mornes and the islets of the south, where the cheese tree, the shortleaf fig, the red gum tree or the frangipani tree thrive;
the mesophilic or humid forest (between 200 and 500 meters of altitude), also called intermediate. It is in this zone that the beautiful fruit trees (cocoa, mango, breadfruit, guava) and especially the mangrove, which occupies about 1,800 hectares in Martinique, recognizable by its red mangroves, whose aerial stilt roots play a filtering role and contribute to keeping the water clear, which is favorable to the growth of coral reefs;
the hydrophilic forest or rainforest: this is the kingdom of the “virgin forest”, lush, rich in vines and epiphytes that colonize the large trees happily exceeding 30 meters in height, because of the abundant rainfall that falls there. Here we find all kinds of vines, ferns, orchids, heliconia and bromeliads;
lastly, the altitudinal forest from 1,000 meters of altitude, where mosses, lichens, tree ferns and savannas flourish.
A green heritage under high protection
Such a heritage justifies the development of an adapted management based on the preservation of ecosystems, today threatened by galloping urbanization. The protection of these natural areas is one of the major challenges of public policies in Martinique. In order to protect this exceptional biodiversity, several measures have been taken to safeguard these natural areas, starting with the nature reserves, notably the Montagne Pelée reserve (1,540 ha), the Pitons du Carbet reserve (1,330 ha) and the Morne-Jacob reserve (1,330 ha).
The preservation of the environment requires the creation of protection perimeters. About fifty sites are now listed or classified in Martinique, especially around the coastline, which is the subject of important protection actions: the Caravelle peninsula, the Salines site, the Diamond rock or the islets of Le François benefit from specific regulations allowing the preservation of the fauna and flora of these ecosystems. There are also acquisitions of sites (forests…) by the Conservatoire du Littoral and the Regional Natural Park of Martinique (Parc naturel régional de Martinique, PNRM) in order to place them under high protection. The PNRM was born in 1976 from the desire to combine the economic development of the island with the preservation of its natural and cultural wealth. Today, it encompasses 70% of the territory, 32 municipalities, most of the forests of Martinique and most of the remarkable natural and landscape areas. For several years, the PNRM has been supporting a process aiming at registering the Volcanoes and Forests of Mount Pelée and the Pitons du Nord on the Unesco World Heritage list. Indeed, the island hosts fauna and flora species recognized as irreplaceable at the scale of humanity.
A precious and varied fauna
If the flora of Martinique is recognized as exceptional, so is its fauna.
Endemic species. Although some species present at the beginning of colonization, such as the Antillean manatee (a freshwater seal) or the agouti (a small rodent), have now disappeared from the island, victims of excessive hunting, the fauna of Martinique remains rich and varied. Some endemic animal species nevertheless prefer to remain discreet, such as the mongoose (a mammal originating from India, halfway between a squirrel and a rat, from the same family as the meerkats), the manicous (a kind of opossum with a pointed snout) and the Martinican pit viper. Also called the fer-de-lance or yellow viper, it is the only species of snake present on the island (and one of the most dangerous). For information, it likes to be in the open, in the sugarcane fields, forests or undergrowth. It is difficult to find because it hides from the mongoose, its predator, introduced on the island to fight it. Moreover, it is not rare that mongooses and snakes replace roosters in the pitt…
You will easily come across anolis (green lizards) and crabs on the beaches, and possibly some bats. The most spectacular reptile of the island remains the iguana, a very protected species, as well as the marine turtles.
Birds. In the skies, there are about 200 species of birds on the island. The most famous of Martinique is undoubtedly the hummingbird, a fly bird that measures no more than 10 cm and is easily recognized by its long beak! Four species of hummingbirds live in Martinique, among which the Purple-throated carib, the largest of the hummingbirds (12 cm!). In the sky and in the trees, one can also admire thrushes, blackbirds (endemic to the island), passerines and blackbirds, traditionally sitting on the hibiscus trees, gathering flowers alongside the thousands of colored butterflies. In the northern forests, it is the rufous-throated solitaire that dominates, in the paths, ortolans, now so rare in Metropolitan France, and on the coasts the herons and the eaglets.
Aquatic fauna. In the clear waters of Martinique, the fauna and flora of the coral reefs offer a dazzling show by the variety of colors and the diversity of species: the curious swimmer will evolve in the middle of schools of small colored fishes and will enjoy the sight, between the multiple starfish, sponges, corals, sea urchins and of course queen conches, famous shellfish of the West Indies, which populate the sea-beds. Flying fish, butterfly fish, scissortail sergeant, striped fish and surgeon fish are more discreet, but just as present. As well as snappers, tuna, kingfish, lobsters timidly sticking out their antennas from underwater crevices and even rays! Like their terrestrial cousins, Martinique's seabed is subject to protection measures to safeguard the species that live there.
Insects. Lastly, there are about 500 different insects in Martinique. Butterflies (notably the famous American monarch) and dragonflies proliferate, without forgetting unfortunately the mosquitoes, a real scourge in the Antilles, especially since the tiger mosquito is a vector of diseases (dengue, Zika virus…). Elusive but very present, the cricket and the "wood cabrit" (cabrit bois, from the same family as the grasshoppers) will delight you every evening with a harmonious musical concert, to which will be added the typical croaking of the Martinican frogs. In short, Martinican fauna appears more colorful than nasty, more carefree than dangerous.
Naturally occurring nuisances
The problem of sargassum algae. Since 2011, between March and July, the Caribbean beaches are subject to the arrival of unwanted guests in large numbers: sargassum, floating brown algae that grow in tropical environments in northeast Brazil. They have long been known to fishermen, but are now invading a large part of the Caribbean coastline because of marine currents, causing considerable discomfort.
Because these algae, without danger in case of direct contact on the skin, release a nauseating toxic gas when they decompose: hydrogen sulfide. This can cause eye irritation, headaches, vomiting, breathing difficulties, which, of course, greatly compromises swimming, and greatly alters the living conditions of the inhabitants, because of the gas emanations due to the accumulation of decomposing sargassum.
Sea professionals are also confronted with this inconvenience, like the fishermen who are unable to use their nets. Faced with this situation, the communities try to do their best by clearing the beaches, but it takes only a few days for these algae to come back and stagnate along the coast of the island. Several solutions are possible to face this new type of invasion of the coasts: spreading these algae in thin layers so that they dry in the sun without rotting and causing unpleasant odors, using them as compost, recovering them in the open sea thanks to a de-polluting ship before they reach the coasts… In October 2019, the ARS and Madininair set up a network of H2S sensors in the main impacted areas in order to ensure reinforced monitoring of hydrogen sulfide emanations, but to date no effective solution has been put in place.
Another nuisance that affects Martinique is the sand mists. From March to September, the island is regularly affected by episodes of air pollution. These sand mists coming from the Sahara are actually grains of sand that fall on the Lesser Antilles forming fine particles responsible for air pollution. The alert threshold is triggered from 50 micrograms. The Martinicans are then invited to limit their sports activities, especially children and the elderly.
