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A survey of the occurrence of native vegetation remnants on Mauritius in 1993

Safford, R.J. (1997) A survey of the occurrence of native vegetation remnants on Mauritius in 1993. Biological Conservation, 80 (2). pp. 181-188. ISSN 0006-3207. (doi:10.1016/S0006-3207(96)00048-1) (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:17927)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided.
Official URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0006-3207(96)00048-1

Abstract

Mauritius (1865 km(2)) was originally completely covered by wet or dry evergreen forest and scrub, and palm savanna. Habitat destruction following human colonization in 1638 resulted in the reduction of native vegetation cover on the mainland to 92.8 km(2), or 5.0% of the land area, by 1993. Most of this is wet evergreen forest and scrub; dry forest is rare and palm savanna is extinct. Of the native vegetation surviving in 1993, 63% was in the south-west, the rest in the centre-east, with a tiny fragment in the north. The existence of several patches, especially relicts on the central plateau, is widely ignored. The newly-established Black River Gorges National Park protects 44% of the total native vegetation area, and 70% of that in the south-west. The native vegetation outside the National Park remains protected by previous legislation.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1016/S0006-3207(96)00048-1
Uncontrolled keywords: Mauritius; native vegetation; fragmentation; habitat mapping; protected area
Subjects: G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GF Human ecology. Anthropogeography
Q Science > QH Natural history > QH75 Conservation (Biology)
G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GE Environmental Sciences
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Anthropology and Conservation > DICE (Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology)
Depositing User: T.J. Sango
Date Deposited: 18 May 2009 09:22 UTC
Last Modified: 16 Nov 2021 09:56 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/17927 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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