Many of the island industries have all but vanished over the years such as the Tannery, which was situated by Tannery beach and various piggeries like the ruin by the lone palm. For fruit orchards, some still remain by Pak Kok village, especially Litchi orchards. Market gardens and rice paddies were located in the valleys. Being an island, fishing and drying of fish is still carried on in some parts. After a visit to the Forest why not visit one of the many seafood restaurants located in Yung Shue Wan before returning to Hong Kong Island.
Giant upright Elephant Ear plants can be found in the shade below the forest canopy, along with species of Lilies, Hibiscus, Rhododendrons, Chloredendrons, Chinese privet etc.
As the Japanese kept a large variety of snakes for experimental purposes on the island during WWII, on leaving they released these into the wild. Most snakes will avoid human contact and retire when they hear one approach. Though just be aware when hiking the forest.
This is by no means a definitive dissertation, but merely to highlight the extreme diversity of flora and fauna which can be found in and around Lamma Forest. We hope this has stimulated your interest to explore the natural environment found here further on this unique island only 25 minutes by ferry from Hong Kong.
All flora has been categorised into plant families and then further identified as the species in question, Latin has been used as the universal medium of identification. We have given mostly the English common names used in Hong Kong however, some trees and herbs have numerous names depending on which part of the world one lives in and in numerous different languages. It is suffice to say the common names can be ambiguous, therefore for exact identification the scientific species name should be referred to, where these occur we have used italics.
