Abstract:In order to understand the ecological adaptability of plant species to high temperature, intense radiation and deficit soil in tropical coral islands, the differences of leaf functional traits and the ecological strategies among different life forms of plants grown on coral island were studied. The results showed that there were significant differences in total N, cellulose concentrations, leaf C/N ratios, water use efficiency and specific leaf area among the life forms, and there were significant correlations among leaf function traits, indicating trade-offs between resource allocation and growth investment of the plants. Plant species exhibited significantly different and divergent ecological strategies grown in the coral islands. In the practice of vegetation restoration in coral island, plant species like Pisonia grandis and Tournefortia argentea could be preferentially adopted, but herb like Wollastonia biflora, Chromolaena odorata and Sphagneticola trilobat should be strictly monitored to avoid their expansion.