An endemic species is a species which is only found in a given range or location in the world. The region that the species is endemic to varies by definition, such as a “site endemic” (e.g. only found on Mount El Cerro del Aripo), a “national endemic” (e.g. found only in Tobago), a “geographical range endemic” (e.g. found in the Himalayan region, which however covers several Himalayan countries and therefore is not a national endemic), or a political region endemic. Conservation can only be carried out under national legislation, and national endemics fully depend on the effort and success of conservation in the country where the species resides.

Trinidad and Tobago Endemic Species:

Birds

Mammals

Reptiles

Amphibians

Freshwater fish

Marine fish

Insects

Other invertebrates

Vascular plants

Birds

• Trinidad Piping-guan or Pawi Pipile pipile
• Trinidad Motmot Momotus bahamensis

Mammals

• Trinidad Spiny Rat Proechimys trinitatus

Reptiles

• Gray Lora Leptophis stimsoni
• Luminous Lizard Proctoporus shrevei
• Tobago False Coral Snake Erythrolamprus ocellatus
• Trinidad Worm Snake Typhlops trinitatus

Amphibians

• Bloody Bay Fragrant Frog Mannophryne olmonae
• El Tucuche Golden Tree Frog Phyllodytes auratus
• Robber Frogs Eleutherodactylus (or Pristimantis) urichi; Eleutherodactylus (or Pristimantis) charlottevillensis;Eleutherodactylus (or Pristimantis) turpinorum
• Trinidad Thin-toed Frog Leptodactylus nesiotus

Freshwater fish

• Catfishes Hypostomus robinii and Ancistrus maracasae
• Guppy Poecilia boesemani
• Mountain Stream Sardine Hemibrycon taeniurus
• Oropuche Guppy Poecilia obscura

Marine fish

• Darksaddle Blenny Starksia sella
• Tawny Blenny Starksia rava
• Tobago Coralbrotula Ogilbichthys tobagoensis

Insects

• Ant Pheidole aripoensis
• Katydid Cocconotus unicolor
• Longhorned Beetle Piruapsis antennatus
• Stonefly Anacroneuria isleta
• Tortoise Beetles Cephaloleia rubra and Cephaloleia brunnea

Other invertebrates

• Freshwater Crab Microthelphusa odaelkae
• Ghost Shrimp Pseudobiffarius caesari
• Goblin Spider Scaphiella simla
• Scorpions Microtityus rickyi and Tityus trinitatis
• Tarantulas Psalmopoeus cambridgei and Lasiodora trinitatis

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Vascular Plants

• Acalypha grisebachiana (Kuntze) Pax & Hoffm.
• Aechmea downsiana Pittendrigh
• Aegiphila obovata Andr.
• Aristolochia boosii Panter
• Begonia eciliata Schulz.
• Begonia mariannensis Wassh. & McClellan
• Besleria seitzii Krug & Urb.
• Besleria strigillosa Urb.
• Clusia aripoensis Britton
• Clusia intertexta Britton
• Clusia tocuchensis Britton
• Coccoloba nigrescens Lindau
• Cochleanthes trinitatis (Ames) R.E. Schult. & Garay
• Croton aripoensis Philcox
• Cybianthus cruegeri Mez
• Cybianthus pittieri Agostini
• Cynanchum freemani (N.E.Br.) Woodson
• Dicranopygium insulare (Gleas.) Harl.
• Duguetia tobagensis (Urb.) R. E. Fr.
• Epidendrum fusiforme (Lindl.) Rchb.
• Epidendrum hombersleyi Summerh.
• Epidendrum lanceolatum Bradford ex Griseb.
• Eriocaulon caesium Griseb.
• Eugenia cruegeri Krug & Urban ex Urban
• Gonolobus tobagensis Urb.
• Justicia flaviflora (Turrill) Wassh.
• Justicia tobagensis (Urb.) Wassh.
• Macrolobium trinitense Urb.
• Marcgravia elegans Krug & Urb.
• Marthella trinitatis (Johow) Urb.
• Maxillaria broadwayi (Cogn)RE Schult.
• Maytenus monticola Sandwith
• Maytenus reflexa Urb.
• Microchilus schultesianus (Garay) Ormerod
• Neurolepis virgata (Griseb.) Pilg.
• Ocotea trinidadensis Kosterm.
• Odontonema brevipes Urban
• Philodendron simmondsii Mayo
• Phoradendron hartii Krug. & Urb.
• Phyllanthus acacioides Urb.
• Phyllanthus mimicus Webster
• Pilea tobagensis Urb.
• Podocarpus trinitensis Buchh. & Gray
• Polygala exserta Blake
• Psychotria rufidula Standl.
• Rhynchospora ebracteata (Standl.) H.Pfeiff
• Rhynchospora ierensis C.Adams
• Rondeletia hispidula (Griseb.) K. Schum.
• Rondeletia rohrii R.O.Williams & Cheesman
• Scleria orchardii C.Adams
• Securidaca lophosoma (Blake) Cheesman
• Sicana trinitensis Cheesman
• Werauhia broadwayi (L.B.Smith) J.R.Grant
• Xylosma sanctae-annae Sleumer
• Xyris grisebachii Malme

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References:

1. The EMBL Reptile Database CD September 2001 edition. Updated with changes through 2004 making it current to January 2005. http://www.reptile-database.org/db-info/changes2005.html
2. Dickinson, E.C. (Ed.) 2003. The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World. Revised and enlarged third edition. Princeton University Press, Princeton
3. FishBase 2004: A global information system on fishes. DVD. WorldFish Center - Philippine Office, Los Banos, Philippines. Published in May 2004.
4. Frost, D.R. 2004. Amphibian Species of the World: an Online Reference. 3.0. American Museum of Natural History, New York, USA
5. IUCN Red List
6. Schulenberg, Thomas S. 2011. Trinidad Motmot (Momotus bahamensis), Neotropical Birds Online (T. S. Schulenberg, Editor). Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology; retrieved from Neotropical Birds. http://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu/portal/species/overview?p_p_spp=761016
7. Van den Eynden, Veerle; Michael P. Oatham; Winston Johnson. 2008. "How free access internet resources benefit biodiversity and conservation research: Trinidad and Tobago’s endemic plants and their conservation status". Oryx 42 (3): 400–07
8. Wilson, D.E. & Reeder, D.M. (Eds.) 2005. Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. Third Edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore