Flora of Cayman Islands

Salvia caymanensis, the Cayman sage, is a short-lived perennial plant in the genus Salvia that is endemic to Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands. It was thought to be extinct for nearly 40 years until it was rediscovered in 2007. After the damage caused by Hurricane Ivan in 2004, conservationists thought that conditions might be ideal for the reappearance of Salvia caymanensis if there was still viable seeds in the wild. A wanted poster, offering a 1000 CI$ reward, led to the discovery of the first plants seen since 1967.

Coccothrinax proctorii, the Cayman thatch palm or Proctor's silver palm, is a palm which is endemic to the Cayman Islands. Henderson and colleagues (1995) considered C. proctorii to be a synonym of Coccothrinax argentata.

Argythamnia proctorii, the Cayman silverbush, is a species of silverbush that is endemic to the Cayman Islands. It is widespread in the forests of all three Cayman Islands, and its population is estimated to be 428,000 mature individuals. It is an erect, wiry-stemmed plant growing to about 1.5 m tall. It is monoecious, and seed capsules are produced year-round. When the seed capsules are ripe, they dry and explode, scattering the seeds.

Agave caymanensis is a species of agave that is endemic to Grand Cayman, Little Cayman and Cayman Brac in the Cayman Islands. It can be found in dry shrubland at all elevations of the islands. A. caymanensis gradually forms a short trunk, that is clothed in dead leaves. It can reach heights of 4 m and widths of 3 m with a rosette of massive, succulent leaves rimmed with thorns. It is monocarpic, and flowering is quite synchronous. Young rock iguanas sometimes use the hollow core of dead flower spikes as a refuge. This species was previously confused with A. sobolifera until described by

Agalinis kingsii is a species of false foxglove that is endemic to the Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands. It occurs in the southern margins of the Salina Reserve sedge wetlands and within the Central Mangrove Wetland. This species is hemi-parasitic. It is threatened by quarry activities close to its habitat.

Aegiphila caymanensis is a species of mint endemic to Grand Cayman. It is a scrambling shrub with one rooting point, it is inconspicuous when not in flower. This species is probably extinct; the last known specimen was bulldozed in August 2015.

Tabernaemontana laurifolia is a species of plant in the family Apocynaceae. It is found in the Cayman Islands and Jamaica.

Harrisia caymanensis is a species of cactus found in the Cayman and Swan Islands.

Pilosocereus jamaicensis is a species of flowering plant in the cactus family Cactaceae, native to the Cayman Islands and Jamaica. It was first described in 2019. It has also been treated as a subspecies of Pilosocereus polygonus, P. polygonus subsp. jamaicensis.

Bletia florida is a species of orchid. It is native to Jamaica, Cuba and the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean. It is also reportedly naturalized in Trinidad and Tobago, as well as parts of Florida.

Chascotheca is a genus of plants in the family Phyllanthaceae described as a genus in 1904. It is native to the western Caribbean. Species Chascotheca neopeltandra (Griseb.) Urb. - Cuba, Hispaniola, Cayman Islands Chascotheca triplinervia (Müll.Arg.) G.L.Webster - Cuba

Neoregnellia is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Malvaceae. It just contains one species, Neoregnellia cubensis. Its native range is the Caribbean region. It is found in the Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominican Republic and Haiti. The genus name of Neoregnellia is in honour of Anders Fredrik Regnell (1807–1884), a Swedish physician and botanist. The Latin specific epithet of cubensis means "coming from Cuba" (where the plant was found). Both the genus and the species were first described and published in Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Vol.20 on page 306-307 in 1924.

Iva cheiranthifolia, the fly marsh elder, is a Caribbean species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. It has been found in Cuba, the Bahamas, and the Cayman Islands.

Chascotheca neopeltandra is a species of plants in the family Phyllanthaceae described as a species in 1904. It is native to the western Caribbean (Cuba, Hispaniola, Cayman Islands).

Ageratum littorale, the Cape Sable whiteweed, is a plant species native to Florida, the common name referring to Cape Sable inside Everglades National Park. Some publications (e. g. Flora of North America) consider this as being the same species as the West Indian A. maritimum, but The Plant List accepts the two as distinct taxa. It is their lead that we are following here. Ageratum littorale grows in beach sand and nearby thickets along the coast as well as hummocks and roadsides at elevations of less than 10 m (33 ft). It is a trailing to decumbent perennial herb up to 50 cm (19.5 in) tall,

Leptocereus is a genus of cacti that are native to the Greater Antilles. It has been placed in the tribe Leptocereeae or in a broadly defined Echinocereeae.

Zamia integrifolia, also known as coontie, is a small, tough, woody cycad native to the southeastern United States (in Florida and formerly in Georgia), the Bahamas, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and Puerto Rico. It is the only cycad native to the continental United States (the parts of the USA that exclude Hawaii and Alaska). Traditionally, it was used by Indigenous Americans to make starch.

Zephyranthes citrina, is a species of bulbous plant belong to the family Amaryllidaceae, native to Mexico.

Tolumnia variegata, commonly known as the harlequin dancing-lady orchid or variegated oncidium in English and as angelito or angelitos in Spanish, is a species of orchid native to the Caribbean.

Smilax havanensis, known as the everglades greenbrier, is a plant species native to Cuba, the Cayman Islands, Bahamas, Turks & Caicos, and southern Florida. Smilax havanensis is a perennial vine armed with prickles. Flowers are small and green, berries dark purple with a waxy coating. Aprostocetus smilax, an Eulophid wasp, induces galls on this species.

Picrodendron is a genus of plant in the family Picrodendraceae, described in 1859. It contains one species, Picrodendron baccatum, native to the West Indies (Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica and the Swan Islands of Honduras).

Scolosanthus is a genus of flowering plants in the coffee family, Rubiaceae. Species include: Scolosanthus acanthodes Scolosanthus acunae Scolosanthus bahamensis Scolosanthus crucifer Scolosanthus ekmanii Scolosanthus grandifolius – espuela de galan Scolosanthus howardii Borhidi Scolosanthus leonardii Scolosanthus liogieri Scolosanthus lucidus Scolosanthus maestrensis Scolosanthus moanus Scolosanthus multiflorus Scolosanthus portoricensis – maricao Scolosanthus selleanus Scolosanthus strictus Scolosanthus subsessilis Scolosanthus triacanthus Scolosanthus versicolor – Puerto Rico devilbrush

Badiera is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Polygalaceae. Its native range is the Caribbean.

Zanthoxylum spinosum is a species of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae, known by the common name Biscayne prickly-ash. It is native to the West Caribbean, including South Florida and the Florida Keys, Cuba, Bahamas, Cayman Islands, and Hispaniola. This species is a shrub or tree growing up to 7 meters tall, covered in prickles. The leaves are up to 18 centimeters long and are divided into several leaflets. Flowers are borne in cymes, each with three sepals and three petals. The round, glandular fruits are borne in clusters. This plant grows on coastal hammocks, beaches, maritime

Cyperus floridanus is a species of sedge that is native to southern parts of North America and the Caribbean.

Rachicallis is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Rubiaceae. It includes a single species, Rachicallis americana, a shrub native to southeastern Mexico and to Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos Islands in the Caribbean. The species was first described as Hedyotis americana by Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin in 1760. In 1893 A. S. Hitchcock placed the species in genus Rachicallis as R. americana.

Swietenia mahagoni, commonly known as American mahogany, Cuban mahogany, small-leaved mahogany, and West Indian mahogany, is a species of Swietenia native to the broader Caribbean bioregion. It is the species from which the original mahogany wood was produced. Mahogany is grown as a plantation tree and sold in timber markets in Kerala, India. Swietenia mahagoni is listed as "Threatened" in the Preservation of Native Flora of Florida Act. It is the national tree of the Dominican Republic.

Petitia, called the bastard stopper, is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae, first described in 1760. It contains two known species, native to Florida and the West Indies. Species Petitia domingensis Jacq. - Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Leeward Islands, Miami-Dade County in Florida Petitia urbanii Ekman. - Cuba, Tortuga Island in Haiti

Jacquinia keyensis, commonly called Joewood, is a woody plant in the primrose family. It is native to the West Indies, where it is widespread on many islands. Its natural habitat is coastal strand, often on coral exposures with salt spray. It is a shrub or small tree with thick, saponaceous, evergreen leaves. It produces white flowers, primarily in the summer and fall. Jacquinia keyensis is listed as "Threatened" in the state of Florida.

Heterosavia is a genus of the family of Phyllanthaceae first described as a genus in 2008. It is native to the Caribbean and southern Florida. It is found in Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Florida, Haiti, Jamaica, southwest Caribbean and Turks-Caicos Islands. The genus was circumscribed by Ignaz Urban and Petra Hoffmann in Brittonia vol.60 on page 152 in 2008. The genus name of Heterosavia is in honour of Gaetano Savi (1769–1844), who was an Italian naturalist, botanist and mycologist.