Hibiscus genevii - critically endangered flower at Monvert Nature Park

Monvert Nature Park is a nature walk,

arboretum An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

s and rehabilitated indigenous forest, situated in Forest Side,

Curepipe Curepipe () also known as ''La Ville-Lumière'' (The City of Light), is a town in Mauritius, located in the Plaines Wilhems District, the eastern part also lies in the Moka District. The town is administered by the Municipal Council of Curepipe. ...

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 ...

History

1 MonVert Nature Walk - Steps up to Lookout Tower

1 MonVert Nature Walk - View of indigenous forest Canopy

The area of Monvert was named after Chevallier Antoine de Monvert, and was previously a dense indigenous forest (with " Bois de Natte", " Bois Manioc" and " Manglier vert" being the most commons tree species). The entire region was taken for logging in the early 1900s, but while much of the surrounding land was re-planted with fast-growing invasive trees such as eucalyptus from Australia, a portion was left, that naturally re-grew some indigenous Mauritian plants. This area was set aside for conservation because of the unusually high

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

involving critically endangered species, and the nature park was set up between 2001 and 2006. As state land it is managed by the Mauritian National Forestry Service.

Location

The nature park entrance is located just off the A10 road, in the region of Forest Side, about 3 kilometres south-east of the

Town Centre. It is the most easily accessed of any indigenous Mauritian forest, being closest to any central urban area. Most of the other remnants of the island's native ecosystems are located either on off-shore islands, or high in

Black River Gorges National Park Black River Gorges National Park is a national park in the hilly south-western part of Mauritius. It was proclaimed on June 15, 1994 and is managed by the National Parks and Conservation Service. It covers an area of 67.54 km² including hum ...

Sections

1 MonVert Nature Park - Arboretum entrance 6

1 MonVert Fernery - Curepipe Mauritius 2

The nature park has two main sections, the smaller visitors interpretation centre, and the nature walk over the larger natural area.

Visitors Interpretation Centre

The Visitors Centre, just off the A10, contains a display of the

, forests and

invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...

of the country, as a basic overview. Behind the centre is the

, where over 150 labelled

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 elsew ...

and indigenous species are grown on grassy slopes intersected with paths. Many are critically endangered or

extinct in the wild A species that is extinct in the wild (EW) is one that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as known only by living members kept in captivity or as a naturalized population outside its historic range due ...

. At the bottom of the arboretum is the

fernery A fernery is a specialized garden for the cultivation and display of ferns. In many countries, ferneries are indoors or at least sheltered or kept in a shadehouse to provide a moist environment, filtered light and protection from frost and other ...

, where many of the island's critically endangered endemic

fern A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...

s and

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

s are displayed. A raised kiosk also serves as a venue for activities.

Nature Walk

The main natural area is located several kilometres further down the road, past the visitors centre. Here, several looped trails go through kilometres of gradually recovering indigenous forest, and past a large elevated platform at the park's highest point, from which the surrounding region can be viewed.

References

{{coord missing, Mauritius Curepipe Tourist attractions in Mauritius Botanical gardens in Mauritius Geography of Mauritius Environment of Mauritius Protected areas of Mauritius