Samoa

Oceanía

130

Documented species

Parks and reserves

Dive sites

Explore on the map

Interactive map

Samoa is made up of two main volcanic islands, Upolu and Savai'i, the latter with recent lava fields and some of the largest shield volcanoes in the Pacific. Its interior keeps humid montane rainforest with tree ferns and giant trees, and its coast alternates lava cliffs, white sand beaches and reefs. Being oceanic islands a long way from any continent, the land fauna is limited but very distinctive: there are no native mammals other than bats, and the flying foxes play an essential role as pollinators and seed dispersers for the forest trees. Samoan waters receive humpback whales in the southern winter and hold green turtles and reefs protected by village closures.

The nature of Samoa

National animal: The manumea, or tooth-billed pigeon, the country's national bird

Did you know?

The manumea, the tooth-billed pigeon, is regarded as the closest living relative of the dodo and exists only in Samoa. It is so scarce and so unobtrusive that for years not a single photograph of a living bird could be obtained, and current estimates put the population at fewer than a hundred. It appears on the country's banknotes and coins, and the search for it has been turned into a national campaign.

Biodiversity profile

PolinesiaDato no disponible con precision en fuentes verificadas consultadas

Climate

•Tropical de selva lluviosa (Af), calido y humedo con estacion de lluvias mas intensa (nov-abr)

Main biomes

•Selva tropical (cubre gran parte de las dos islas principales, Upolu y Savai'i)
•Bosque montano en zonas de mayor altitud
•Selva húmeda de montaña
•Campo de lava reciente
•Arrecife de coral
•Manglar costero
•Acantilado volcánico
•Bosque de tierras bajas
•Laguna litoral

Marine and coastal ecosystems

•Arrecifes de coral extensos alrededor de las islas
•Zonas costeras con alta diversidad de peces e invertebrados

Flagship wildlife

•Zorro volador de Samoa
•Paloma dentirrostro (manumea, ave nacional)
•Paloma terrestre de Samoa
•Tortuga marina verde y carey
•Manumea
•Ballena jorobada
•Tortuga verde
•Tortuga carey
•Paloma frugívora del Pacífico
•Rálido de Samoa
•Delfín girador
•Cangrejo de los cocoteros
•Pez napoleón

Notable endemic species

•Zorro volador de Samoa
•Ave blanca de ojos de Samoa
•Varias especies de arboles, helechos y orquideas endemicas de las selvas de Upolu y Savai'i
•Manumea
•Rálido de Samoa
•Escinco de Samoa
•Estornino de Samoa

Notable threatened species

•Manumea o paloma dentirrostro (En Peligro Critico, ave nacional)
•Paloma terrestre de Samoa (En Peligro)
•Tortugas marinas (varias especies amenazadas)

Notable protected areas

•Parque Nacional O Le Pupu-Pue (Upolu)
•Reservas comunitarias de bosque en Savai'i
•Reserva de la Península de Falealupo
•Parque Nacional del Lago Lanoto'o
•Reserva Marina de Palolo Deep
•Área de Conservación de Uafato
•Trinchera de To Sua

Main conservation threats

•Deforestacion por crecimiento demografico y agricultura
•Tala y sobrepesca insostenibles
•Cambio climatico (subida del nivel del mar, acidificacion oceanica, blanqueamiento coralino)
•Especies invasoras

Notable natural phenomena

•Ciclones tropicales estacionales
•Actividad volcanica historica en Savai'i

Conservation

The cyclones of the 1990s and hunting drastically reduced the flying fox populations, whose disappearance would compromise the regeneration of the forest because many trees depend on them to disperse their seeds. The marine closures managed by the villages are the basis of coastal conservation.