Galapagos Islands plantlife - coastal zone vegetation

This evergreen zone is based on salt tolerance abilities of certain species at the land/sea interface. The type of vegetation found varies greatly. The mangroves form forest in coves, while on beaches there are vines, grasses and shrubs. Many plants in this zone are adapted dispersal by the sea and few are endemic because of the unstable nature of the environmental and high immigration rates.

The lowest life zone on the island is the coastal zone. Those plants that exist on the seas edge can be divided into two portions the Wet Coastal Zone or Mangrove Zone and the Dry Coastal Zone or Beaches and High Tide Areas.

Mangroves live in the Wet Coastal Zone. These salt-tolerant trees and shrubs thrive in shallow and muddy saltwater or brackish waters. In the Galapagos there are 4 varieties of Mangroves including the Black Mangrove, White Mangrove, Red Mangrove, and Button Mangrove.

The Dry Coastal Zone is made up of the dry sandy area from the sea to the high water line. This area supports low lying spreading plants which are able to retain water including the Sesuvian Portulacastrum an herb whose stem turns a bright reddish color during the dry season.