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A few centuries ago, Antigua was covered in a thick forest that
teemed with wildlife. The island was alive with multicoloured
parrots, tree frogs, other spectacular animals and plants, and
a small harmless snake called the Antiguan racer.
 The
Antigua of today would be unrecognisable to anyone who lived
on the island before the first European settlers arrived.
Over 95% of Antigua's original forests have disappeared. First
they were chopped down to make way for plantation crops, then,
more recently, for other developments such as tourism. Even
the valuable mangrove forests around the coast are being drained
and cleared to build hotels. Worse still, there are goats
everywhere. They eat every little sapling before it has chance
to grow into a tree.
Many native animals that depended on the forests for food
and shelter have died out or moved away. Others have been
crowded out by people and invasive species (see Villains).
A few still survive on Antigua's small offshore islands.
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Where
have all the forests gone? (left) |
Antigua is covered with plantations of pineapple
and other crops (above) |
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