Report-Botanists

Vegetation
The Island is located in the tropic/sub-tropic lattitudes. We believe it has a similar climate to many other Pacific Islands of a similar lattitude - it seems to support both tropical and some temperate and sub-tropical vegatation, making it ideal for growing a wide variety of food plants.

It has a diverse range of geographic zones. In the high mountain tops there is dense tropical rainforests. This covers the majority of the island, especially the western part of the island which receives the highest rainfall from the prevailing south easterly weather systems. There is a smaller forest in the hills to the east of the island.

In the forests the following plants were found growing wild:

> > There is also scrubland containing large amounts of flax, cotton, kapok and pandanus. > > >
 * papaya
 * banana
 * yam
 * breadfruit
 * a variety of vines or lianas
 * cassava
 * hibiscus
 * frangipani[[image:theisland2011/Islandveg.jpg width="415" height="276" align="right"]]
 * bromeliads
 * many species of epihpytes
 * many species of saprophytes
 * red berry (//Coprosma rapensis)//
 * tapau //(strong timber tree)//
 * red cedar (//Toona ciliata//),
 * Brown Pine (//Podocarpus grayae//)
 * Black Pine (//Sundacarpus amara//),
 * Milky Pine (//Alstonia acholaris//)
 * Damson (//Terminalia sericocarpa//),
 * Black Walnut (//Endiandra palmerstonii//)
 * Brown Tulip Oak (//Argyrodendron//),
 * Silver maple (//Flindersia acuminate//)
 * Candlenut (//Aleurites rockhinghamensis//)
 * Rusty Fig (//Ficus destruens//)
 * Banan Fig (//Ficus pleurocarpa//)
 * Septic Fig (//Ficus septic//)
 * White Fig (//Ficus virens//)
 * Fig (//Ficus virgata//)[[image:theisland2011/rainforest2.jpg align="right"]]
 * pandanus
 * a variety of ferns including the giant nehe fern
 * tapau, formerly an important timber resource, and the giant nehe fern (Angiopteris chauliodonta).
 * Reeds grow in abundance in the marshy swamps found inland and along some of the lower lying lands surrounding some of the larger rivers, mangrove swamps on the coast, and some marshes.

Coconut palms grow along some of the beaches.