Cuba’s diverse wildlife stems from its unique natural history. Cuba was not originally in the Caribbean Sea but in the Pacific Ocean, where the island was situated 100 million years ago, before the forces of continental drift slowly brought it into the Caribbean. As the island migrated over the ages, an astonishing variety of life arrived by air, sea, and possibly by land bridges that may have once existed. Over time, these animals adapted to their new environment. Today, more than half of Cuba’s plants and animals, including more than 80 percent of its reptiles and amphibians, are found nowhere else on the planet.

Protected by its isolation, the wildlife of Cuba has remained naturally preserved, untouched, and unexplored. Through a special arrangement with the Cuban government, unprecedented access was granted to film the island’s natural riches.

Join NATURE in exploring Cuba’s coral reefs, swamps, forests, and caves to uncover the astonishing diversity of life on the island.

Online content for Cuba: Wild Island of the Caribbean was posted January 2005.

Ninety miles off the tip of Florida lies a Caribbean isle shaped like a crocodile. That’s fitting, because the island of Cuba is home to rare “leaping” crocodiles — and a host of other unusual animals, including some of the world’s smallest hummingbirds, frogs, and lizards. There are caves full of bats and their wily predators, snakes.

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The Republic of Cuba is comprised of Cuba, the main island; four archipelagos — the Sabana-Camagüey, the Colorados, the Jardines de la Reina, and the Canarreos; and smaller islands. The republic covers more than 110,000 square miles, about the size of Pennsylvania.

Cuba includes a patchwork of habitats, from fields and swamps to mountains and forests. Millions of tourists visit each year to swim in its warm seas and lounge on tropical beaches.

Here are few key spots for wildlife lovers:

Habana Province (1) is home to Cuba’s capital city, Havana, and lots of limestone caves and caverns. Some are flooded, drawing divers looking for adventure. Drifting in the perpetually dark waters, they can see a rare cave fish named Lucifuga, “the animal that flees from light.” It has no eyes and virtually no color, making it a ghostlike creature. Some species found in Cuba are found nowhere else. (More about Cuba’s wildlife »)

About 100 miles south of Havana is Ciénaga de Zapata (2) or Zapata Swamp, a world-famous wetland and national park. Mangroves, marshes, and woodlands there are home to a wide variety of birds, including two found nowhere else: the Zapata wren and the Zapata rail. The largest population of endangered Cuban crocodiles, known for their leaping abilities, also lives in the swamp. These crocs can grow to nearly 13 feet in length and 300 pounds in weight.

The Ciénaga de Zapata Biosphere Reserve, at 1.5 million acres, is Cuba’s largest protected area. But parts of the swamp are still unprotected. Nearby is the Bay of Pigs (3), where each spring millions of land crabs pour out of nearby swamps and into the shallow waters to breed. The bay was the site of a failed invasion attempt in 1961 by U.S.-backed Cuban expatriates intent on overthrowing Castro.

On the east end of the island, Guantanamo Bay (4) is a great place to see several dozen species of seabirds that feed in Cuban waters, from pelicans to sharp-beaked terns. The bee hummingbird, the world’s smallest bird, inhabits nearby forests.

At the Baconao Biosphere Reserve (5) there are caves full of bats, and the bat-eating cave boa. Visitors wait until dusk to watch the bats emerge for their nightly hunt.

A flock of a different kind — flamingos — can be found at Humedal Río Máximo-Cagüey (6), an internationally important wetland. Up to 75,000 of the tall pink birds can be seen feeding in the flats here, making it the largest colony of Caribbean flamingos.

At Peninsula de Guanahacabibes (7), on the very western tip of Cuba, a reef-fringed bay is home to sea turtles and the occasional porpoise. The reef is also visited by sharks and goliath groupers, which can weigh up to 800 pounds.

On the Isle of Youth (8) swimmers can see another kind of underwater treasure: coral reefs. These fence-like structures, built by living coral polyps, are home to an amazing array of brightly colored fish, clams, and invertebrates.

LAND & PEOPLE

Some say “Cuba” means “land” in an ancient Caribbean language. The island of Cuba, the largest island in the Caribbean and the 16th largest in the world, stretches for more than 740 miles across and more than 120 miles wide. It has about 1,500 miles of coastline, and no point on the island is more than 50 miles from the sea.

More than 11 million people call Cuba home. Most live in the low coastal plain that rings the island, where they raise sugarcane and other crops and work in small enterprises. The capital city, Havana, has a population of about 2 million.

Cuba has several steep mountain ranges. In 1959, communist leader Fidel Castro took control of the island, establishing a socialist dictatorship. The United States imposed a trade ban in the early 1960s, and limits travel to Cuba (other countries do not). The Soviet Union heavily subsidized Cuba’s economy until the end of the Cold War in the 1990s. Since then, the island’s economy has been slow to recover.

Cuba is composed mostly of limestone, a soft, porous rock that easily erodes. As a result, the island is honeycombed with caves and has the highest density of caves of any place on earth. There are also steep mountain ranges: the Sierra de los Órganos, the Sierra de Trinidad, and the Sierra Maestras. The Sierra de los Órganos are made up of “mogotes,” a set of oddly dome-shaped mountains. Pico Turquino, part of the Sierra Maestras, is Cuba’s tallest peak, rising up south of the Guantanamo Valley to about 6,500 feet.

Cuba’s tropical climate is moderated by trade winds, and includes a dry season (November to April) and a rainy season (May to October). Hurricanes periodically batter the island in the summer and fall.

UNIQUE PLANTLIFE

Cuba has more than 6,000 plant species, about half of which are found nowhere else. Some of the island’s best-known plants include the royal palm (Reistonea regia), which appears on the nation’s coat of arms. Some researchers believe there are more than 15 million palms on the island. Other interesting varieties include the rare cork palm (Microcycas calocoma), which is endemic and first appeared when dinosaurs walked the earth, and the big belly palm (Palma barrigona), whose shape matches its name.

Cuba’s swamps are renowned for their wide variety of plant and animal species. In the mountains, dry forests support a wealth of species, including delicate orchids and the elegant butterfly lily (Hedychium coronarium Koenig), the national flower. Mogotes, dome-shaped mounds in the Sierra de los Órganos, have a type of dry forest consisting of semidecidous and evergreen trees. The endemic ceibón tree (Bombacopsis cubensis) and piñón tree (Erythrina cubensis), and the oak tree (Tabebuia calcicola), are just some of the species found there. Pine forests, dominated by the Caribbean pine tree (Pinus caribaea), are abundant in the Sierra de los Órganos and in the northern half of the Isle of Youth. Rainforests also thrive in Cuba, especially in the eastern part of the island.

Along the southern coast, large mangrove swamps provide nursery waters for fish and important habitat for birds. The Zapata Swamp, the largest wetland in Cuba, has a wide range of vegetation, ranging from aquatic plants to plants typically found in semideserts. Species in the swamp include: water hyacinths (Ichhornia crassipes), fragrant water lilies (Nymphaea odorata), water lettuce (Pistis stratiotes), sawgrass (Claudium jamaicense), and sugarcane plume grass (Erianthus giganteus).

ECO-ALERT

Closed to much of the world for years, Cuba is now welcoming outsiders. Along with the tourists, however, has come development and increased use of natural resources. As a result, as on many small islands with a growing population, Cuba’s environment is feeling the pressure.

The government has stepped up efforts to protect Cuba’s environment. The problems are familiar. Deforestation and erosion are spreading as farms and cities expand. As trade improves, non-native species are finding their way onto the island. In addition, water pollution is worsening in Havana Bay.

Luckily, much of Cuba’s coastline and many mountain areas are still in very good shape, and the government is moving to protect them before irreversible changes occur. Over the last few decades, it has designated several major parks and stepped up efforts to inventory and map everything from dry forests to coral reefs. It has also moved to protect more than a dozen wetlands considered to be internationally important. International environmental groups have been helping out in an effort to prevent Cuba from repeating the haphazard development that has spoiled other Caribbean islands.

Many conservationists are optimistic about saving this remarkable wild island. But it may be decades before Cubans know if their efforts to preserve their natural resources for the future have paid off.

Cuba is a place teeming with wildlife, more animal and plant species than anywhere else in the Caribbean. Discover Cuba’s animals, some of which are endemic.

BEE HUMMINGBIRD (Mellisuga helenae)

Believed to be the world’s smallest bird, Cuba’s native bee hummingbird buzzes around forests and field edges in many parts of the island, where it feeds on flower nectar. It grows to about 2 inches long and weighs less than an ounce, or less than a dime. Some locals call it “zunzun,” and believe it is a symbol of love. Birders from all over the world travel to Cuba in hopes of catching a glimpse of this tiny bird.

BUTTERFLY BAT (Natalus family)

Cuba’s caves are home to many kinds of bats. But perhaps the best known is the butterfly bat, one of the world’s smallest. It has a wingspan of just 5 inches and weighs less than an ounce. It spends much of its time hanging around in dark, humid caves, but takes flight each evening to hunt for insects.

CARIBBEAN FLAMINGO (Phoenicopterus ruber ruber)

Caribbean flamingos are found in the Caribbean, parts of Central and South America, and the Galapagos Islands. The bird likes lagoons, muddy flats, and shallow lakes, and prefers saline water. These highly social birds reproduce in large colonies of several thousand individuals. Flamingos lay one white egg on top of the nest, a large mud mound with a concave top. Female and male flamingos take turns incubating the egg for about 28 days. Parents feed their chick with “milk,” a liquid secreted from the upper digestive tract. Flamingos eat small crustaceans, mollusks, algae, insects, and occasionally fish. They use their lamellae, a comb like filter in their bill, to sift food from water. Flamingos’ pink color comes from the carotenoids in their food. The Caribbean species, the brightest of all flamingos, perform displays such as wing salutes, twist-preening, and head flaggings in groups in order to synchronize breeding in a colony.

CARIBBEAN REEF SHARK (Carcharhinus perezi)

Found from Florida to Brazil, the Caribbean reef shark is a regular visitor to Cuba’s waters. Usually shy, reef sharks can become bold when fed by divers or anglers. They can smell a bleeding fish from great distances, and use other senses to home in on the vibrations and electrical fields created by prey and other living beings. The reef shark can grow to 9 feet in length.

CUBAN BROWN ANOLE (Anolis sagrei)

Cuban brown anoles are native to Cuba and throughout the Caribbean. They have been recently introduced to Florida, Georgia, and Hawaii, probably as stowaways on planes and ships. Brown anoles consume a wide variety of insects. Brown anoles breed every 1 to 2 weeks during the summer months. Males bob their heads when they are ready to breed; the female cocks her head so that a male can crab her with his mouth. About 2 weeks after mating, the female will lay one egg at a time, reaching a total of about 15 to 18 eggs over the breeding season. Eggs are buried in the warm, moist earth and hatch 6 to 8 weeks later. Brown anoles vary in color from gray to black, but females have a white stripe and a distinctive triangular pattern on their back. These lizards have a colored fold of skin on their neck called the dewlap. Male brown anoles spread their red-orange dewlaps during territorial aggression and courtship interactions.

CUBAN CROCODILE (Crocodylus rhombifer)

Once also found on other islands in the Caribbean, this rare crocodile is now limited to Cuba, where it lives in dense swamps. It can grow up to 13 feet long, and typically feeds on fish and crustaceans. It can also “leap” high out the water, with a push from its powerful tail, to grab hutia from their treetop perches. Biologists believe that fewer than 6,000 wild Cuban crocodiles remain, although others are raised on farms for their meat and hides.

CUBAN EMERALD HUMMINGBIRD (Chlorostilbon ricordii)

Cuban emerald hummingbirds are found in forests, coastal vegetation, and gardens in Cuba and the Bahamas. The Cuban emerald is bigger than its cousin, the bee hummingbird, and as a result feeds on a much larger array of blossoms. Because of this size difference, the two species have avoided competing with each other for food. Like other hummingbirds, male Cuban emeralds are smaller and more colorful than the females. Hummingbirds are the only birds in the world that can fly backwards, and their wings flap at 15 to 80 beats per second. Because hummingbirds sip from so many different flowers on any given day, they are integral to the process of pollination.

CUBAN HUTIA (Capromys pilorides)

Found on Cuba and nearby islands, this small, hairy-tailed rodent is an accomplished tree climber. It has 5 strong claws on each foot. But it spends plenty of time on the ground too, foraging for leaves, bark, small lizards, and insects. This food goes into an amazing 3-compartment stomach able to digest just about anything! Hutias typically prefer dense forests, and can live for up to 11 years in captivity.

CUBAN PARROT (Amazona leucocephala)

Cuban parrots are found in eastern and central Cuba, in the Cayman Islands, and in the Bahamas. They eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, as well as flowers and seeds. Cuban parrots have iridescent green feathers edged with black; the forehead, crown, and areas around the eyes are white; the cheeks and throat are red. Parrots mate for life and use the same nesting sites, typically holes made by woodpeckers or limestone cavities, year after year. These birds are known for their loud, raucous calls, especially during flight. The parrot is an endangered species throughout its entire range due to poaching and habitat loss.

CUBAN TODY (Todus multicolor)

Todies defend a tiny patch of forest, rarely leaving their wooded and semiwooded territories. They are endemic to Cuba and are known on the island as “cartacuba.” Female todies lay 3 to 4 eggs between the months of March and June. Parents feed their chicks up to 140 insects per day — making these young birds among the most frequently fed chicks in the world. Todies snatch caterpillars, spiders, and other kinds of insects off leaves. There are only five species of tody in the world, and all of them are found on Caribbean islands. The Cuban tody is the most colorful, with a blue throat, pink flanks, a yellow underbelly, and a green body. These birds dig tunnels in embankments or in hollow tree trunks for nests. The tunnel’s walls are covered with a sealant — a mixture of grass, lichen, algae, and feathers.

CUBAN TROGON (Priotelus temnurus)

The Cuban trogon is the national bird of Cuba and is found all over the island. These birds like wet and dry forests of all altitudes, and prefer the shade to the sun. They eat mostly flowers, fruits, and insects — and they can hover while feeding. Instead of building its own nest, the Cuban trogon occupies abandoned woodpecker holes or other preexisting crevices in trees. This colorful bird measures 10 to 11 inches from beak to tail. Trogons typically have a red belly, a green-colored back, a white underside, and a long fluffy tail. Locally the bird is referred to as the Tocororo, or Tocoloro, names derived from the sound of its call. Trogons usually travel in pairs, and their flying style is rather inelegant: with choppy, short flaps of their wings, they make considerable noise.

ELEUTHERODACTYLUS FROG (Eleutherodactylus iberia)

The Northern Hemisphere’s smallest frog has no common name and hops around the moist forests and swamps of Cuba’s Monte Iberia. It tends to be nocturnal and feeds on insects at night. Discovered in the 1990s, the tiny amphibian fits neatly on a dime — and its name, when typed out, is actually longer than the frog itself! Researchers say the discovery shows that many Cuban species remain to be classified. Perhaps there is even a smaller frog somewhere on the island.

GOLIATH GROUPER (Epinephelus itajara)

Goliath groupers like coral reefs, rocky ledges, and deep holes where they can hide. The fish range from the coast of the Carolinas through Florida and the Gulf of Mexico. The goliath grouper spawns during the summer months. These fish feed on crustaceans, especially the spiny lobster, and other fish. They use their sharp teeth to seize their prey, which are swallowed whole. This critically endangered fish is aptly named for its size — it can reach lengths of at least 8 feet and weigh up to 800 pounds, through most observed today are significantly smaller. To locate other groupers or to ward off enemies, the fish produce a rumbling sound that travels great distances underwater. Goliath groupers can live between 30 and 50 years and scientists believe the fish may change sex as they mature.

LUCIFUGA FISH (Lucifuga genus)

Although many of Cuba’s caves are dry, some are filled with fresh or brackish water, providing a home to several kinds of this unique cave fish. Adapted to the dark, the four species of Lucifuga fish found on Cuba have no eyes, and their skin has lost most pigment. As a result, Lucifuga can look like a ghost fish swimming through ink-black water. Sensitive to light, it often flees when approached by divers with bright flashlights.

Each spring millions of small reddish land crabs emerge from the moist forests surrounding Cuba’s Bay of Pigs to breed in the nearby sea. As NATURE’s Cuba: Wild Island of the Caribbean shows, the evening invasions — which last for weeks — can wreak havoc on ordinary life. Roads become covered with smelly smashed crabs, while car owners must repair tires shredded by the sharp shells.

The crabs and their eggs do provide a feast for birds, fish, and some hungry mammals. But seafood-loving Cubans won’t touch them — they contain a harmful toxin.

More than four million years ago, the ancestor of these crabs — known to scientists as Gecarcoidea — lived in the sea. Slowly, however, they evolved to survive in a foreign place: the shady forest floor. But, like marine crabs, red land crabs still breathe with gills that must remain moist. To stay damp, the crabs dig tunnels. During the spring rains, males and females seek each other out and mate.

A few weeks later, the female crabs, swollen with eggs carried in a pouch, head for the nearby sea. The journey, which may be as long as six miles, can take days. And there are plenty of obstacles, such as roads, curbs, and even coastal resort swimming pools. On sunny days, the crabs must find shade — or dehydrate and die.

Those that reach the sea face one last challenge — laying their eggs while avoiding being swept back into the water. These crabs are true land creatures and cannot survive in the sea. Once the ripe eggs are successfully released into the water, they hatch immediately. After a few weeks, the baby crabs climb back onto land and head for the forests, to begin the cycle anew.

Cuba isn’t the only island to experience crab invasions. Related land crabs live throughout the Caribbean. And a similar species takes over Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean each fall.

There, an estimated 100 million red crabs move to the shores for a little romance. The males go first, taking up to several weeks to reach the surf, where they tenaciously fight for the best territory. The females follow, to mate with the males, and several weeks later are swollen with eggs. As on Cuba, the eggs hatch on contact with water, and the baby crabs make the return trip to the forests a few weeks later.

On both islands, officials make efforts to protect the crabs by closing some roads and sidewalks to create “crab crossings.” In part, that’s because the great crab migrations have become an unusual tourist draw. For some people, a glimpse of thousands of crabs scrambling into the surf is an unforgettable sight of a lifetime.

Cuba’s Biosphere Reserves
http://www2.unesco.org/mab/br/brdir/directory/contact.asp?code=CUB
Facts, figures, and a map from the United Nations.

Cuban Crocodile
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/ReptilesAmphibians/Facts/FactSheets/Cubancrocodile.cfm
Learn more about this leaping crocodile found only in Cuba.

Birding in Cuba
http://gorp.away.com/gorp/location/carrib/cuba/bird_cuba.htm
Go along on a bird census in Cuba with GORP, a resource for outdoor recreation.

Cuba’s Wildlife Hotspots
http://www.camacdonald.com/birding/carcuba.htm
Discover hot birding places and more.

Ecotourism in Cuba
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Publications/ZooGoer/1999/1/ecotourismincuba.cfm
Learn about the ecotourism boom in Cuba with this article by the National Zoological Park.

Cuba’s Environment
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/caribbean/cuba/environment.htm
Find out more about the Cuban landscape from the Lonely Planet travel guides.

Cuba: Facts and Figures
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/cu.html
Learn more about Cuba from the CIA’s World Factbook.
BOOKS & PRINT

Silva Lee, A. NATURAL CUBA / CUBA NATURAL. New York: Pangea, 1997.

Garndo, Orlando. FIELD GUIDE TO THE BIRDS OF CUBA. New York: Comstock, 2000.

Benchley, Peter. “Cuba Reefs: A Last Caribbean Refuge.” NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC (February 2002):44-67.

Federal Research Division. CUBA: A COUNTRY STUDY. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2002.

McCoy, Terry. CUBA ON THE VERGE: AN ISLAND IN TRANSITION. New York: Bulfinch, 2003.

Narrated by
EDUARDO TRUCCO

Written and Produced by
PAUL REDDISH

Photography
MIKE POTTS

Underwater Photography
ERICH PRÖLL
THOMAS HACKL

Editor
SONJA LESOWSKY

Dubbing Edidtor
PAUL COWGILL

Dubbing Mixer
JONATHAN JENKINS

Music
NICHOLAS HOOPER

Graphics
RED 3

Production Manager
FIONA GRANT

Location Manager
JUAN CARLOS OCAÑA MARTÍNEZ

Driver
JOSÉ BLANCO

Research
MARTIN DAVIES
LORAIZA DAVIES

The Producer Wishes to Thank:
EDUARDO RODRÍGUEZ DE LA VEGA
GONZALO RÍOS ANDRÉS
TELMO LEDO
MAX D’OU
MINISTERIO DE TURISMO
JOSÉ ENRIQUE OCAÑA MARTÍNEZ
CELIA GARCÍA CANTILLO
CUBATUR
ROBERTO SOBERON
GILBERTO SILVA TABOADA
ARTURO KIRKCONNELL
LUÍS DÍAZ
JORGE LUÍS FONTELA RIZO
MUSEO NACIONAL DE HISTORIA NATURAL
JORGE LUÍS CLINCHE CREGO
EL CHINO
CITMA
ADRIÁN DE LA PAZ
CIRO TORRES
SECCIÓN NACIONAL DE ESPELEOBUCEO
SOCIEDAD ESPELEOLÓGICA DE CUBA
DIANA WILLIAMS
SCUBA EN CUBA
CENTRO DE INVESTIGACIONES MARINAS
UNIVERSIDAD DE HABANA
JUAN GALLARDO

Unit Manager
ELEONORA FREY

Co-Producers
GREG DIEFENBACH, DDE
JÖRN RÖVER, NDR

Executive Producer
WALTER KÖHLER

© ORF 2004 all rights reserved

For NATURE:

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JANICE YOUNG

Producers
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PATTY JACOBSON

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An ORF Universum, Thirteen/WNET New York and Devillier Donegan Enterprises Co-production. This program was produced by Thirteen/WNET New York, which is solely responsible for its content.

© 2005 Educational Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved.

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About the Writer

David Malakoff is a journalist covering research discoveries and the politics of science for SCIENCE MAGAZINE in Washington, D.C. His writing has appeared in a wide range of venues, including THE ECONOMIST, THE WASHINGTON POST, and ABCNews.com.

Photos for “Overview,” “Explore Cuba,” “Wildlife Guide,” “Cuban Crab Invasion,” and “Resources” © 2002 Michael Potts. Other photos from “Cuba: Wild Island of the Caribbean.”

Thirteen Online is a production of Thirteen/WNET New York’s Kravis Multimedia Education Center in New York City. Dan Goldman, Executive Director, thirteen.org. Bob Adleman, Business Manager.