Tropical Island Recovery

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Tropical islands around the world are losing much of their biodiversity. Cousine Island, Seychelles, is a remarkable example of recovery which runs countercurrent to this trend of tropical island impoverishment. From a highly degraded island in the 1960s, Cousine Island is now a revitalized carpet of natural vegetation and a haven for nesting seabirds. All alien vertebrates have been eradicated, as have most of the invasive alien plants. Poaching of nesting marine turtles and shearwaters has stopped, leading to an increase in breeding numbers. The Sooty tern has returned to the Island to breed after an absence of 30 years. The coastal plain has been restored with indigenous trees, bringing back the historic forest type. Rats, mice and crazy ants, and other alien organisms, are kept off the Island by strict quarantine measures. Three threatened Seychelles endemic land birds (Seychelles warbler, Seychelles magpie robin and Seychelles white-eye) have been established and are breeding successfully. Overall, the Island restoration programme has improved the compositional, structural and functional biodiversity of the island. The coral reefs are also recovering after the mass coral bleaching event at the end of the last century. Cousine Island is thus paving the way in the craft and science of tropical island restoration as a legacy for future generations. This book is about the recovery of Cousine Island and its natural history, told in much detail and with profuse illustration. It is for restoration ecologists, tropical ecologists, island enthusiasts, and for anyone interested in tropical island natural history.