Samways / Hitchins / Bourquin Tropical Island Recovery

Cousine Island, Seychelles
1. Auflage 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4443-2742-7
Verlag: John Wiley & Sons
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 260 Seiten, E-Book

Tropical island species and ecosystems are threatened worldwide asa result of increasing human pressure. Yet some of theseislands also lend themselves to restoration, as they are physicallydefined units that can be given focused attention, as long asresources are available and clear conservation targets areset. Cousine Island, Seychelles, is a tropical island thathas received such intensive restoration. From a highlydegraded island in the 1960s, the island has now been restored towhat is believed to be a semblance of the natural state. Allalien vertebrates have been eradicated, as have 25 invasive alienplants. Cultivated plants are now confined to one smallsection of the island. Poaching of nesting marine turtles hasbeen stopped, leading to an increase in turtle breedingnumbers. The shearwater population has increased in size withpoaching activities under control. The Sooty tern has alsoreturned to the island to breed. The coastal plateau has beenrestored with over 2500 indigenous shrubs and trees, which have nowgrown into a forest carpet. There are strict quarantine procedureson the island, keeping it free of rats, mice, various alieninvertebrates and potentially invasive alien plants. Threethreatened Seychelles endemic land birds (Seychelles warbler,Seychelles magpie robin and Seychelles white-eye) have beenintroduced and are thriving, with these introductions contributingto both the magpie robin and the white-eye being downgraded from CRto EN (the warbler remains at VU). Ecotourism, and natureconservation for the local inhabitants, have been introduced in away that does not reduce the improved compositional, structural andfunctional biodiversity of the island. The result of therestoration effort appears to be sustainable in the long term,although challenges still remain, especially with regards toadequate clean water and a non-polluting power supply on theisland. Cousine is thus paving the way in the art and scienceof tropical island restoration as a legacy for future generations.
There is no other book available on this case study. Theneed for the book arises from the fact that here is a positive notefor conservation in these times of so much negative news on thestate of our environment. More importantly, the book showshow such restoration should be done, and is therefore a model formany other islands around the world. The book has manyillustrations so as to give the book wide appeal and literally toshow what can done in terms of restoration. All this is basedon much scientific detail, including many new data. The aimis, by way of example, to demonstrate how practical restoration,based on sound scientific research, can be carried out for thebetterment of ecological integrity and ecosystem health.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Samways, Michael

Hitchins, Peter

Bourquin, Orty

Henwood, Jock

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Foreword by Sir James Mancham
Acknowledgements
Cousine Island in a world context
Cousine as a Seychelles island
Cousine Island's conservation significance in anutshell
How humans nearly pushed Cousine past the tipping point
The changing seasons
The lie of the land
Cousine's rocks, soils and sand
The moody sea
Cousine's green carpet
Cousine's woody cloak
Cousine's vegetation reprieve
Sponges, corals and the great bleaching event
Life in the shallow sea: from shells to urchins
Between sea and land: a variety of crabs
Ecological webmasters: terrestrial invertebrates
A rich tapestry of fish life
Cousine as a haven for turtles
Of tortoises, lizards and snakes
Overcoming the extinction of experience: sea bird haven
Aquatic and shore birds
A truly successful story: endemic land birds
The welcome and the unwelcome: vagrant and alien birds
Visiting mammals to Cousine
Cousine Island in the world today, and its future
Scientific summary
List of species recorded on and around Cousine
Glossary
Bibliography
Photographic and artwork credits
About the authors
Index

Über Autor(innen)

Michael Samways is Professor and Chair of the Department ofConservation Ecology and Entomology, Stellenbosch University, SouthAfrica.
Peter Hitchins was Cousine Island Manager 1995-2001, andConservation Advisor to the Island 2002-2004.
Orty Bourquin was Conservation Consultant to CousineIsland during instigation of the Island's ManagementPlan.
Jock Henwood has been Cousine Island Manager,2002-present.