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MAURITIUS
Mauritius Forest Figures
Forest CoverTotal forest area: 37,000 ha % of land area: 18.2%
Primary forest cover: n/a % of land area: 0.0% % total forest area: n/a
Deforestation Rates, 2000-2005Annual change in forest cover: -200 ha Annual deforestation rate: -0.5% Change in defor. rate since '90s: 105.3% Total forest loss since 1990: -2,000 ha Total forest loss since 1990:-5.1%
Primary or "Old-growth" forests Annual loss of primary forests: n/a Annual deforestation rate: n/a Change in deforestation rate since '90s: n/a Primary forest loss since 1990: n/a Primary forest loss since 1990:n/a
Forest ClassificationPublic: 52.6% Private: 47.4% Other: 0% Use Production: 29.7% Protection: 43.2% Conservation: 21.6% Social services: 8.1% Multiple purpose: n/a None or unknown: n/a
Forest Area BreakdownTotal area: 37,000 ha Primary: n/a Modified natural: 22,000 ha Semi-natural: n/a Production plantation: 11,000 ha Production plantation: 4,000 ha
PlantationsPlantations, 2005: 15,000 ha % of total forest cover: 40.5% Annual change rate (00-05): n/a
Carbon storageAbove-ground biomass: 6 M t Below-ground biomass: 2 M t
Area annually affected byFire: n/a Insects: n/a Diseases: n/a
Number of tree species in IUCN red listNumber of native tree species: 194 Critically endangered: 41 Endangered: 14 Vulnerable: 9
Forest loss on this island country occurred over a relatively brief span of time. Early Dutch sailors wiped out wildlife, including the famous dodo bird, but inflicted little actual damage on the forest. During the late 1700s and early 1800s, French colonists cleared large tracts of forest for sugar cane plantations, as a source of fuelwood to power mills, and as a source for timber. After the French, very little forest remained, mostly restricted to mountain areas. From 1948 to 1973 the entire landscape was doused with DDT which severely affected bird populations.
Today 18.2%—or about 37,000 hectares—of Mauritius is forested. Of this, none is classified as primary forest. Mauritius lost 5.1% of its forest cover, or around 2,000 hectares between 1990 and 2005, and nearly 10% of its natural vegetative cover. Mauritius has some 188 known species of amphibians, birds, mammals and reptiles according to figures from the World Conservation Monitoring Centre. Of these, 29.3% are endemic and 11.2% are threatened. Mauritius is home to at least 750 species of vascular plants, of which 43.3% are endemic. 29.8% of Mauritius is protected under IUCN categories I-V.
Invasive ant interferes with gecko's role in pollinating endangered plant
(11/28/2008) Invasive ants are destroying the symbiotic relationship between a colorful gecko and a critically endangered flower on the island of Mauritius, reports New Scientist citing research published by Dennis Hansen and Christine Müller in the journal Biotopica.
Neon green gecko key to preventing Mauritian plant extinction
(04/17/2007) A vibrantly colored gecko plays a key role in a highly threatened ecological community in Mauritius reports new research published in American Naturalist. Studying plant-animal interactions in Mauritius, an Indian Ocean island famous for its extinct dodo bird, researchers found that a rare plant, Trochetia blackburniana, benefits from its proximity to Pandanus plants because they house high densities of geckos responsible for pollination. The findings, which unusually identify a lizard as a key pollinator, are significant because they provide "valuable management insights for ongoing conservation efforts to save the highly endangered flora of Mauritius.