Solomon Islands are an alluring basket of numerous small and beautiful volcanic islands with lush and abundance of tropical vegetation. Situated within the Melanesian circle of Oceania continent, this island entity is part of two distinct terrestrial eco regions, which are the Solomon Islands rain forests and the Vanuatu rain forests eco region. Belonging to the Australasia eco zone, Solomon Islands is a conglomeration of more than 990 islands. All the islands are scattered over a land area of 28,000 square kilometres above the South Pacific Ocean. The islands of Solomon Islands are of various shapes and sizes and most of them are home to volcanic dispositions. The vast spread of the islands can be determined by the fact that the distance between the most western and most eastern Solomon Islands is about 1500 km.
With hazy proof of inhabitation by Melanesians some 30,000 years ago, Solomon Islands were introduced to the rest of the world by European explorer Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa in 1568. After periods of invasion and colonisation by Great Britain, Germany and Japan, Solomon Islands were granted self-governance in 1976 and independence was achieved on July 7, 1978.