Plants of the Pacific Islands

Abstract

Imagine your island without any plants. There would be no trees, no bushes, no grasses, no seaweeds and no colourful, sweet-smelling flowers. Your island would not be so beautiful. Do you realise that without plants there would be no humans or other animals on Earth or in our oceans? Green plants are the only living things that can use sunlight to make food that can be eaten by other living things. This process is called photosynthesis. During photosynthesis, green plants use sunlight, plus water and nutrients from the soil and carbon dioxide from the air. They use these materials to make their own food. Many plants are eaten by animals. They are the first part of all food chains on the land and in the sea. Green plants also produce oxygen that we breathe. So we all depend on plants. Plants come in many shapes and sizes, from the smallest plankton in the sea, which we cannot even see, to the largest trees on the land.