page_title: Aruba
section_title: Flora
hierarchical_section_title: Aruba / Geography / Flora
caption_attribution_description: English: Arikok National Park, Aruba Deutsch: Arikok Nationalpark, Aruba
context_page_description: Aruba is an island and a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands lying in the southern Caribbean Sea, located about 29 kilometres north of the Venezuelan peninsula of Paraguaná and 80 kilometres northwest of Curaçao. It measures 32 kilometres long from its northwestern to its southeastern end and 10 kilometres across at its widest point. Together with Bonaire and Curaçao, Aruba forms a group referred to as the ABC islands. Collectively, Aruba and the other Dutch islands in the Caribbean are often called the Dutch Caribbean.
  Aruba is one of the four countries that form the Kingdom of the Netherlands, along with the Netherlands, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten; the citizens of these countries are all Dutch nationals. Aruba has no administrative subdivisions, but, for census purposes, is divided into eight regions. Its capital is Oranjestad.
  Unlike much of the Caribbean region, Aruba has a dry climate and an arid or desert, cactus-strewn landscape. This climate has helped tourism as visitors to the island can reliably expect warm, sunny clear skies year-round. It has a land area of 179 km² and is densely populated, with a total of 101,484 inhabitants at the 2010 Census.
context_section_description: The flora of Aruba differs from the typical tropical island vegetation. Xeric scrublands are common, with various forms of cacti, thorny shrubs, and evergreens. Aloe vera is also present, its economic importance earning it a place on the Coat of Arms of Aruba.
  Cacti like Melocactus and Opuntia are represented on Aruba by species like Opuntia stricta.
  Trees like Caesalpina coriaria and Vachellia tortuosa are drought tolerant.
caption: Cacti in Arikok National Park
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