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Diospyros Egrettarum
''Diospyros egrettarum'' is a species of tree endemic to Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ... and was once a dominant species throughout dry and coastal forests. Due to harvests for timber and firewood in the past the species was reduced to fewer than 10 individuals on the main land. The only viable population remained on ﾃ四e aux Aigrettes, a coral island off the east coast, where it was able to survive thanks to protective measures, such as the eradication of exotic plants and rats. The tree is named after this Island. Morphology Most characteristic feature of the tree is the white bark of the often multistemmed trees. They form rectangular leathery leaves of dark colour with thick waxy cuticles. This species closest relative is ''Diospyros leucomelas'' ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ﾃ四e Aux Aigrettes
Ile aux Aigrettes is an islet off the south-east coast of Mauritius. It functions as a nature reserve and a scientific research station. It is also a popular visitors attraction - both for tourists and for Mauritians. Geography It has an area of and is the largest islet in the Grand Port bay, off the south-east coast of Mauritius and roughly a kilometer () from the coastal town of Mahebourg. It is low-lying and is formed from coral-limestone (unlike the majority of Mauritius which is from volcanic rock). Nature reserve and conservation ''Ile aux Aigrettes'' conserves the world's only remaining piece of ''"Mauritius Dry Coastal Forest"'' - a once plentiful vegetation type. It is therefore home to a large number of extremely rare or Endangered Species, endangered species of plants and animals. Over several hundred years, indigenous flora and fauna was devastated by logging and invasive species. In this sense, the islet shared the same fate as the rest of Mauritius. The Dodo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, the Cape sugarbird is found exclusively in southwestern South Africa and is therefore said to be ''endemic'' to that particular part of the world. An endemic species can be also be referred to as an ''endemism'' or in scientific literature as an ''endemite''. For example '' Cytisus aeolicus'' is an endemite of the Italian flora. '' Adzharia renschi'' was once believed to be an endemite of the Caucasus, but it was later discovered to be a non-indigenous species from South America belonging to a different genus. The extreme opposite of an endemic species is one with a cosmopolitan distribution, having a global or widespread range. A rare alternative term for a species that is endemic is "precinctive", which applies to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Agalﾃｩga and St. Brandon. The islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, along with nearby Rﾃｩunion (a French overseas department), are part of the Mascarene Islands. The main island of Mauritius, where most of the population is concentrated, hosts the capital and largest city, Port Louis. The country spans and has an exclusive economic zone covering . Arab sailors were the first to discover the uninhabited island, around 975, and they called it ''Dina Arobi''. The earliest discovery was in 1507 by Portuguese sailors, who otherwise took little interest in the islands. The Dutch took possession in 1598, establishing a succession of short-lived settlements over a period of about ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diospyros Leucomelas
''Diospyros leucomelas'' (marble ebony, bois d'ebene marbre or bois d'ebene a veines) is a species of tree endemic to Mauritius. Description This low, multi-stemmed tree species resembles the related species ''Diospyros egrettarum'' (and less so ''Diospyros revaughanii'') in its dark, rectangular, leathery leaves, rounded leaf-base, very short petiole, and short fruits. ''Diospyros leucomelas'' can be distinguished by the red midribs of its leaves though, which remain into adulthood and become especially prominent on the leaf undersides. Distribution and habitat Like ''Diospyros egrettarum'', it occurred in coastal and dry forest, all around Mauritius, and was especially common along the eastern coast. In fact, these two species were the only two primarily coastal or lowland species of ''Ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus ''Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diospyros Revaughanii
''Diospyros revaughanii'' is a rare species of tree in the family Ebenaceae (ebony). The tree is one of several species of ebony tree which are endemic to the island of Mauritius, in the western Indian Ocean. Description A short, evergreen, shrubby tree, which reaches 4 meters in height. The large, thick leaves have a circular to slightly rectangular shape. They are densely packed along the stems, and attach directly to the tree without any leaf stalks. This is the distinctive feature which can be used to distinguish this tree from the other ebony species of Mauritius. Like many Mauritian plants, it is heterophyllous and the foliage of juvenile plants is entirely different to that of adult plants. This adaptation is due to the grazing of the (now extinct) giant tortoises of the island. The leaves of young ''D. revaughanii'' are therefore longer, thinner, oblong and have petioles (stalks). Its trunk is thin and it branches from quite low down. Branches and twigs form at an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monarch Fern
''Microsorum scolopendria'', synonym ''Phymatosorus scolopendria'', commonly called monarch fern, musk fern, maile-scented fern, breadfruit fern, or wart fern is a species of fern within the family Polypodiaceae. This fern grows in the wild in the Western Pacific rim from Australia to New Caledonia to Fiji and throughout the South Pacific to French Polynesia. It was introduced in Hawaii in the late 1910s and has subsequently naturalized rapidly. It is found on all main islands. Its Hawaiian name ''lauaﾊｻe'' is thought to have originally referred to the native fern ''Microsorum spectrum''. The scientific name ''M. scolopendria'' has been misapplied to '' Microsorum grossum'' (and their synonyms in ''Phymatosorus''). Uses When crushed, the fern issues a scent similar to maile. Sometimes, pieces of the fern are interlaced in leis made of strung-up keys (individual drupes) of the pandanus fruit. It is also one of the plants used for scenting kapa fabric. Folklore Expan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rattus Rattus
The black rat (''Rattus rattus''), also known as the roof rat, ship rat, or house rat, is a common long-tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus ''Rattus'', in the subfamily Murinae. It likely originated in the Indian subcontinent, but is now found worldwide. The black rat is black to light brown in colour with a lighter underside. It is a generalist omnivore and a serious pest to farmers because it feeds on a wide range of agricultural crops. It is sometimes kept as a pet. In parts of India, it is considered sacred and respected in the Karni Mata Temple in Deshnoke. Taxonomy ''Mus rattus'' was the scientific name proposed by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 for the black rat. Three subspecies were once recognized, but today are considered invalid and are now known to be actually color morphs: *''Rattus rattus rattus'' 窶 roof rat *''Rattus rattus alexandrinus'' 窶 Alexandrine rat *''Rattus rattus frugivorus'' 窶 fruit rat Characteristics A typical adult black rat is long, n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Telfair's Skink
''Leiolopisma telfairii'', also known commonly as the Round Island ground skink, the Round Island skink, and Telfair's skink, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to Round Island, one of the islands of Mauritius. Taxonomy Other members of the genus ''Leiolopisma'' occur on New Caledonia and New Zealand, but the Round Island skink is closely related to the two extinct Mascarenes taxa, '' L. mauritiana'' from Mauritius and '' L. ceciliae'' from Rﾃｩunion. Etymology ''L. telfairii'' is named after Irish botanist Charles Telfair,Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Leiolopisma telfairi'', p. 262). the founder of the Royal Society of Arts and Sciences of Mauritius. Description ''L. telfairii'' reaches a total length (including tail) of between . The body is general brownish grey mottled with dark brown spots. The small scal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pink Pigeon
The pink pigeon (''Nesoenas mayeri'') is a species of pigeon in the family Columbidae endemic to Mauritius. The pink pigeon nearly became extinct in the 1970s and the 1990s and is still very rare. It is the only Mascarene pigeon that has not become extinct. It was on the brink of extinction in 1991 when only 10 individuals remained, but its numbers have increased due to the efforts of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust since 1977. While the population remains at below 500 birds as of 2011, the IUCN downlisted the species from Critically endangered to Endangered on the IUCN Red List in 2000, and then downlisted it again to Vulnerable in 2018. Taxonomy and evolution Initially classified as a true pigeon, the pink pigeon was reclassified in a monotypic genus by Tommaso Salvadori. Recent DNA analyses suggest its nearest relative is the geographically close Malagasy turtle dove (''Streptopelia picturatus''), and it has thus been suggested that it be placed in the genus ''Strep ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aldabra Giant Tortoise
The Aldabra giant tortoise (''Aldabrachelys gigantea'') is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is endemic to the islands of the Aldabra Atoll in the Seychelles. It is one of the largest tortoises in the world.Pritchard, Peter C.H. (1979) ''Encyclopedia of Turtles.'' Neptune, New Jersey: T.F.H. Publications, Inc. Ltd. Historically, giant tortoises were found on many of the western Indian Ocean islands, as well as Madagascar, and the fossil record indicates giant tortoises once occurred on every continent and many islands with the exception of Australia and Antarctica. Many of the Indian Ocean species were thought to be driven to extinction by over-exploitation by European sailors, and they were all seemingly extinct by 1840 with the exception of the Aldabran giant tortoise on the island atoll of Aldabra. Although some remnant individuals of ''A. g. hololissa'' and ''A. g. arnoldi'' may remain in captivity, in recent times, these have all been reduced as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trees
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are usable as lumber or plants above a specified height. In wider definitions, the taller palms, tree ferns, bananas, and bamboos are also trees. Trees are not a taxonomic group but include a variety of plant species that have independently evolved a trunk and branches as a way to tower above other plants to compete for sunlight. The majority of tree species are angiosperms or hardwoods; of the rest, many are gymnosperms or softwoods. Trees tend to be long-lived, some reaching several thousand years old. Trees have been in existence for 370 million years. It is estimated that there are some three trillion mature trees in the world. A tree typically has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground by the trunk. This trunk typically co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diospyros
''Diospyros'' is a genus of over 700 species of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs. The majority are native to the tropics, with only a few species extending into temperate regions. Individual species valued for their hard, heavy, dark timber, are commonly known as ebony trees, while others are valued for their fruit and known as persimmon trees. Some are useful as ornamentals and many are of local ecological importance. Species of this genus are generally dioecious, with separate male and female plants. Taxonomy and etymology The generic name ''Diospyros'' comes from a Latin name for the Caucasian persimmon ('' D. lotus''), derived from the Greek ﾎｴﾎｹﾏ狐ρﾏﾏ∃ｿﾏ : diﾃｳspyros, from ''diﾃｳs'' () and ''pyrﾃｳs'' (). The Greek name literally means "Zeus's wheat" but more generally intends "divine food" or "divine fruit". Muddled translations sometimes give rise to curious and inappropriate interpretations such as " God's pear" and " Jove's fire". The genus is a large one a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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