Flora & Fauna of Bermuda

Bermuda is a tiny island alone in the Atlantic, so its wildlife is unusual: the most northerly coral reefs in the Atlantic, plants and animals found nowhere else on earth, and a stopping place for thousands of migrating birds. Here is everything on our site about the island's nature, from the reef in front of the cottages to the parks and the birds.

Flora

Plants of BermudaBermuda's own plants first, then trees, flowers, seaside plants, ferns, seagrasses and garden fruit Bermuda’s Old RosesSlater's Crimson China, the Bermuda mystery roses, and where to see them All the plantsThe complete list, with endemic, native, introduced and protected plants marked

In the sea

Fish & marine mammals

FishParrotfish, angelfish, grunts, snappers and more, with a complete list of every fish Humpback WhalesWhale watching in March and April, and Bermuda's whale story

Marine invertebrates (sea creatures without a backbone)

Corals: Hard & SoftBrain corals, star corals, sea fans and sea rods: all protected Nudibranchs & Sea SlugsTiny, colourful and easy to miss ShellsOn the shore, in the shallows and on the beach Crabs, Lobsters & UrchinsPlus octopus, jellyfish and the Portuguese man o' war Glow WormsBermuda's famous glowing sea worms

On land and in the air

Animals with backbones

MammalsMigrating bats, whales and dolphins, and the animals people brought BirdsEvery bird recorded here, and the ones you will see around the cottages Reptiles & AmphibiansThe rare Bermuda skink, lizards, sea turtles, and the whistling frogs you hear at night

Land invertebrates (small creatures without a backbone)

InsectsButterflies, dragonflies and bees, with a complete list Spiders, Centipedes, Land Crabs & SnailsIncluding Bermuda's own land snails and protected land crabs

Found only in Bermuda

These are some of Bermuda's endemic species, found nowhere else in the world. Many came close to disappearing and are now protected and carefully looked after.

Bermuda petrel, or cahowPterodroma cahowThought extinct for 300 years until it was rediscovered in 1951; now nests on islands at the east end. More »
Bermuda white-eyed vireo, "chick-of-the-village"Vireo griseus bermudianusBermuda's own subspecies of the white-eyed vireo. More »
Bermuda skinkPlestiodon longirostrisBermuda's only endemic reptile, critically endangered; lives on rocky shores and small islands.
Bermuda killifish and Lover's Lake killifishFundulus bermudae, F. relictusSmall fish found only in a few of Bermuda's brackish ponds. More »
Bermuda breamDiplodus bermudensisA silvery fish you will see around the rocks and docks, found nowhere else. More »
Greater and lesser Bermuda land snailsPoecilozonitesThe greater land snail was thought extinct until 2014; it is now being bred and released again. More »
Bermuda cedarJuniperus bermudianaThe island's great native tree, used for houses and ships; most were killed by a scale insect in the 1940s and 1950s.
Bermuda palmettoSabal bermudanaBermuda's native palm; Paget Marsh still has an old palmetto grove.
BermudianaSisyrinchium bermudianaA small blue iris that flowers in spring: Bermuda's national flower.
Bermuda olivewoodCassine laneanaA native evergreen tree of the old hillside forests.
Governor Laffan's fernDiplazium laffanianumDisappeared from the wild and now kept going by careful propagation.

Protected species

Many plants and animals in Bermuda are protected by law (the Protected Species Act 2003, the Fisheries (Protected Species) Order 1978 and the Protection of Birds Act 1975). You must not catch, collect, harm or disturb them. They include:

  • All corals, including sea fans, sea rods, black coral and fire coral
  • All parrotfish, and several groupers (Nassau, tiger, gag, yellowfin, red and snowy grouper, mutton hamlet)
  • Seahorses, the spotted eagle ray and the whale shark
  • Queen conch, harbour (milk) conch, West Indian topshell, helmets and bonnets, the Bermuda scallop, calico scallop and clam, pearl oyster, netted olive and Bermuda cone
  • All sea turtles, whales and dolphins
  • The long-spined sea urchin, West Indian sea egg and four-sided sea cucumber
  • Wild birds: almost every bird is protected by the Protection of Birds Act 1975; the cahow, longtail, vireo and common tern have extra protection
  • Seagrasses, mangroves, the Bermuda cedar and several native ferns and plants

Full list: Department of Environment and Natural Resources, protected species. On our species lists, protected and endemic species are marked with a badge.

Please help look after it

  • Never touch, stand on or take coral, and don't feed the fish.
  • Leave any shell with a living animal inside where you found it.
  • Keep to the paths in parks and nature reserves, and keep dogs on a lead.
  • Take all your rubbish home, especially plastic and fishing line.

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