Our wildlife mirrors the diversity, beauty and wonder of the Caribbean itself. .. from the world's biggest butterfly to the world's smallest hummingbird.

Our mainland countries have rain forest that has been described as 'the earth’s lung'. We are making strenuous efforts to preserve it as a habitat for some of the world’s most extraordinary creatures, and for the benefit of future generations.

Our islands, coral-encrusted outcrops cut off from the outside world, took a separate evolutionary course and are home to unusual creatures rarely found elsewhere.

On land, there are still many survivors of the hunter’s holocaust on the islands, including ancient species such as crocodiles and iguanas. Trinidad, which was attached to South America before the sea cut the link only 9,000 years ago, has the same wealth of species as neighbouring mainland countries – anteaters, pine martens, raccoons, monkeys, the fearsome boa constrictor and a wide selection of snakes, many of them poisonous.

In Venzeula, seven species of the cat family inhabit the forest, including the jaguar, puma and ocelot. You will hear the eerie echoes of howler monkeys and perhaps catch a glimpse of the spider monkey, the long-tailed capuchin and the nocturnal durukuli.