🇨🇻 The flowers of Cape Verde
3 pages from Cape Verde: its flowers, the things made with them and the places to see them, across 4 cities and regions.
Cape Verde’s flora is shaped by its dry climate and island geography, with over 80 plant species found nowhere else. Most vegetation is adapted to arid conditions, but reforestation has added pines, oaks, and acacias. Notable endemic flowers include the bellflower Campanula bravensis and the wallflower Erysimum caboverdeanum.
- Over 80 plant species are endemic to Cape Verde.
- Most native plants now survive in mountain peaks and steep slopes.
- Three million trees are planted each year for reforestation.
- Bellflower Campanula bravensis is unique to the islands.
- 97 plant species are considered endangered.
The plant life of Cape Verde
Cape Verde’s plant life reflects its dry, island environment. Most of the land supports savannah or steppe vegetation, with semi-desert plants on the flatter areas and arid shrubland higher up. The original forests and scrub have been heavily altered by agriculture and settlement, leaving native species mainly in remote mountain slopes and peaks. Both temperate and tropical trees grow here, depending on elevation. Over 660 plant species are recorded, with a significant number unique to the islands. Large-scale tree planting since the 1970s has introduced new forests, especially of pine, oak, sweet chestnut, and acacia.
From region to region in Cape Verde
Flora varies with the landscape. The leeward sides of the islands are mostly desert, with sparse, thorny or toxic shrubs. Coastal areas like Maio, Sal, and Boa Vista have salt-tolerant plants in brackish soils. Highlands, especially on Santo Antão, São Nicolau, Santiago, and Fogo, hold most of the rare and endemic plants. Forests of introduced species are found on the cool peaks and uplands, while eucalyptus grows on Fogo’s heights and neem trees are common in São Vicente.
Flowers to know in Cape Verde
Cape Verde is home to over 80 endemic vascular plants, including the bellflower Campanula bravensis, Nauplius smithii, Artemisia gorgonum (a type of sagebrush), and the wallflower Erysimum caboverdeanum. The islands also have unique trees such as the dragon tree Dracaena draco and the tamateira palm Phoenix atlantica. Indigenous acacias and fig trees are present, along with ironwood. Many of these endemics are now restricted to less accessible areas.
Threats and protection in Cape Verde
Many native plants are threatened, with 97 species and 19 subspecies listed as endangered. Most of these are found in the highlands, especially on Santo Antão, São Nicolau, Santiago, and Fogo. Habitat loss from agriculture and settlement has confined many endemics to remote spots. Reforestation and conservation projects are ongoing, with millions of trees planted to restore habitats.
The facts in this overview come from the Wikipedia article "Flora of Cape Verde", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence. Phool rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.
Cities and regions of Cape Verde
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Sweet alyssum: Joanbanjo, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Cape Verde: Ji-Elle, CC BY-SA 3.0, source