Abstract:In order to understand the stress resistance characters of Canavalia maritima in Paracel Islands, the anatomical structure, physiological characteristics and nutrient status of leaves were studied. The results showed that palisade tissue of C. maritima leaves developed well with high density of stomata. The chlorophyll a/b was lower than 3:1. The antioxidants enzyme activities were high, especially the activity of SOD was the highest, and content of proline was high. In addition, under low soil nutrient content, the nutrient content in leaves was high. Therefore, Canavalia maritima could be used for vegetation restoration and reversing desertification, because it had characters in resistance to drought, strong light, high temperature and infertile.