There are thousands of plant species in the Canary Islands, with a very high rate of endemism. Our plant species are arranged according to the different island microclimates, giving rise to the so-called “Pisos de Vegetación” (Vegetation Levels). From the coasts to the summits, our islands are populated by coastal halophilic vegetation, tabaibales-cardonales, thermophilic forests, laurisilva (laurel-leaved forests), fayal-brezal, pine forests and summit retamares.

With the introduction of intensive cultivation on the islands after the conquest, large areas of land, once covered with vegetation, were cleared and ploughed up. The thermophilic forest was practically condemned to disappear, but also the laurel and pine forests were drastically reduced in area. The disappearance of the forests, natural moisture collectors and responsible for the recharge of the aquifers, together with the increase in the extraction of water reserves to supply the growing population and agriculture, led to a sharp decline in the islands’ groundwater reserves.