In a single place
Fiji is a multi-island country in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Formed by volcanic activity, the islands consist largely of dry grasslands and mangrove swamps. The climate is tropical with high temperatures and a lot of rain. There are many endemic species here. A species that is endemic lives only in a certain location. It may be on a particular island or in a special lake, on a certain mountain top or in a specific country.
Fiji consists of hundreds of islands, formed by volcanic activity. The country of Fiji belongs to Oceania.
The Nabukelevu volcano on Fiji had its last outbreak in the 1600's. The area on, and around the volcano has many endemic species of birds.
Photo: Jaejay77-CC-BY-SA
Endemic species are common in isolated places. This lake in Arizona, USA, was formed when the limestone bedrock collapsed and created a hole in the ground. The lake is home to at least five different species found nowhere else on Earth.
Photo: Efo8183-CC-BY-SA
Islands are extra isolated
On islands, such as Fiji, endemic species are common. This is because islands are isolated, and therefore species cannot interbreed as easily as on the mainland. Endemic species are fully adapted to the environment and climate of the particular location they inhabit. Some endemic birds lose the ability to fly, unless they need it to escape predators. Animals and plants that are so adapted to the local environment are especially vulnerable to changes in the environment and climate. This is why endemic species are highly sensitive to extinction.
The emu is a large bird, related to ostriches. It is endemic to Australia, and cannot fly. When the Europeans came to Australia, several relatives to the emu became extinct.
Photo: Donald-Hobern-CC-BY
Millions of years ago, marsupials existed in several places in the world. The tectonic plates made Australia into a large island, isolated from the rest of the world. Eventually, almost all species of marsupials became extinct in the rest of the world, due to competition from the placental mammals. These days, most marsupials, like the kangaroo, are endemic to Australia.
Some birds ending up on isolated islands loose their ability to fly, since there are no terrestrial predators. The New Zealand kiwi bird, is one of those birds.
Photo: Glen-Fergus-CC-BY-SA
The kakapo is a parrot endemic to New Zealand. It has lost its ability to fly, and is critically endangered. There are probably no more than 200 individuals left in the wild.
Photo: Mnolf-CC-BY-SA
On Inaccessible Island, in the Atlantic ocean between Africa and South America, is the world's smallest flightless bird species. It is called Inaccessible Island rail, and has lost its ability to fly, since no land-living predators live on the island.
Bild: Brian-Gratwicke-CC-BY
The mysterious aye-aye is related to lemures and endemic to Madagascar. It uses its long fingers to knock on tree trunks, to find cavities containing insects for the aye-aye to eat.
Photo: nomis-simon-CC-BY
The beautiful golden fruit dove is endemic to Fiji.
Photo: Rainer-Burkard-CC-BY-SA
The world's rarest fish is called Devils Hole pupfish. It only exists in a single water filled hole in Nevada, eastern USA.
Photo: Olin-Feuerbacher Public Domain
The Indian flying lizard glides from tree to tree, using its extra large skin flaps on the sides of its body. The lizard is endemic to southern India.
Photo: Prashanthns-CC-BY-SA
Arriving in a new location
How do animals and plants end up on a new island? Well, many have arrived on the island by swimming, floating on logs or by being washed away by the water after a flood. Birds may take a wrong turn, or find a temporary landing place during migration where they have food and there is little competition. Geological changes that alter the soil and climate may have historically caused animal species to flee, and some have migrated to new habitats such as islands.
After a hurricane in the Caribbean in 1995, 15 green iguanas made their way 270 kilometers across the ocean, from the island of Guadeloupe to Anguilla. They got there by rafting on fallen tree trunks. The trip took around three weeks, and before that no green iguanas had lived on the island of Anguilla. Nowadays, a population of green iguanas, originating from the 15 rafters, live on Anguilla.
Photo: Paul Asman, Jill Lenoble-CC-BY
Driftwood is believed to be an important way in which species get to new places. Some species clinge to the wood, while others are able to lay their eggs on wood, drifting to another place.
Photo: Corina-Vicentini-CC-BY-SA
The common ancestor to the lemures of Madagascar is believed to have rafted on driftwood from the African continent to the island of Madagascar.
Photo: Mathias-Appel-Public-Domain
The Fiji banded iguana is endemic to Fiji, and is believed to have rafted to the islands on driftwood across the ocean. The species is highly endangered, but there are several conservation programs trying to save the species from extinction.
Photo: Leszek-Leszczynski-CC-BY
The threats facing the Fiji banded iguana
The Fiji banded iguana is an endemic species that is highly endangered. Zoos around the world are working with Fiji to conserve the iguana. They breed Fiji banded iguanas in a breeding programme to ensure that there are iguanas in reserve in case they become too scarce in the wild. The threat to the Fiji banded iguana is mainly because humans have brought several species of predators to the islands. These predators hunt the Fiji banded iguanas as well as other species endemic to Fiji. Another major environmental problem in Fiji is the deforestation of the rainforest.
The extinct dodo
A long time ago there was a bird called the dodo. It was related to today’s pigeons but was unable to fly. This was because it was endemic to the island of Mauritius, just off Madagascar, where it had no enemies. When Europeans landed on the island, they saw the dodo as easy prey – easy to hunt and with plenty of meat to eat. The dodo was fiercely hunted, and was completely eradicated in the 17th century, just 100 years after it was discovered by the Europeans.