Fauna
If the flora is sparse and not very virulent in the Cape Verde archipelago, the earth-bound fauna is even more scarce, despite the introduction of domestic cattle to the islands with colonisation, with horses, donkeys and cows, and particularly the goat, able to find food in a hostile environment. Even the macaco verde (grivet), (cercopithecus aetiopus), present in some areas of Santiago and Brava, was brought from the continent, as was the toad (bufo regularis). Reptiles are not numerous as well and are limited to a few species, excluding snakes of any type. Into the 20th century, in some streams where a small current of running water was maintained there were freshwater crustaceans (crayfish and shrimp). However, with the systematic use of groundwater, by opening boreholes, or at the surface, the streams all stopped carrying water.
The birdlife of Cape Verde includes notable biodiversity, with a hundred and fifty species, of which some stand out.
If the flora is sparse and not very virulent in the Cape Verde archipelago, the earth-bound fauna is even more scarce, despite the introduction of domestic cattle to the islands with colonisation, with horses, donkeys and cows, and particularly the goat, able to find food in a hostile environment. Even the macaco verde (grivet), (cercopithecus aetiopus), present in some areas of Santiago and Brava, was brought from the continent, as was the toad (bufo regularis). Reptiles are not numerous as well and are limited to a few species, excluding snakes of any type. Into the 20th century, in some streams where a small current of running water was maintained there were freshwater crustaceans (crayfish and shrimp). However, with the systematic use of groundwater, by opening boreholes, or at the surface, the streams all stopped carrying water.
The birdlife of Cape Verde includes notable biodiversity, with a hundred and fifty species, of which some stand out.
