Editing Mauritius (section)

=== Biodiversity ===
{{Main|Wildlife of Mauritius}}

[[File:Dronte dodo Raphus cucullatus.jpg|thumb|upright=.8|Mauritius was the only known habitat of the extinct [[dodo]], a flightless bird.]] [[File:Phelsuma ornata - journal.pbio.1001382.png|thumb|[[Mauritius ornate day gecko]]]]

The country is home to some of the world's rarest plants and animals, but human habitation and the introduction of [[non-native species]] have threatened its indigenous flora and fauna.<ref name="BBC" /> Due to its volcanic origin, age, isolation, and unique terrain, Mauritius is home to a diversity of flora and fauna not usually found in such a small area. Before the Portuguese arrival in 1507, there were no terrestrial mammals on the island. This allowed the evolution of a number of flightless birds and large reptile species. The arrival of humans saw the introduction of invasive alien species, the rapid destruction of habitat and the loss of much of the endemic flora and fauna. In particular, the [[extinction]] of the flightless [[dodo]] bird, a species unique to Mauritius, has become a representative example of human-driven extinction.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Shapiro|first1=Beth|last2=Sibthorpe|first2=Dean|last3=Rambaut|first3=Andrew|last4=Wragg|first4=Graham M.|last5=Bininda-Emonds|first5=Olaf R.P.|last6=Lee|first6=Patricia L.M.|last7=Coooper|first7=Alan|display-authors=3|year=2002|title=Flight of the Dodo|url=http://pgl.soe.ucsc.edu/dodo_Shapiro02.pdf|journal=Science|volume=295|issue=5560|page=1683|doi=10.1126/science.295.5560.1683|pmid=11872833}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Smaill|first=Belinda|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3y8eDQAAQBAJ&dq=dodo+extinction+emblematic&pg=PA76|title=Regarding Life: Animals and the Documentary Moving Image| page= 76 |date= 2016|publisher=SUNY Press|isbn=978-1-4384-6249-3}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Hollars|first=B. J.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=K94nDwAAQBAJ&dq=dodo+%22poster+child%22&pg=PA3|title=Flock Together: A Love Affair with Extinct Birds|date=1 February 2017|publisher=U of Nebraska Press|isbn=978-0-8032-9642-8}}</ref> The dodo is prominently featured as a (heraldic) [[supporter]] of the national [[coat of arms of Mauritius]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Republic of Mauritius- Coat of Arms|url=http://www.govmu.org/English/ExploreMauritius/NationalSymbols/Pages/Coat-of-Arms.aspx|access-date=27 March 2019|website=govmu.org|archive-date=27 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327180439/http://www.govmu.org/English/ExploreMauritius/NationalSymbols/Pages/Coat-of-Arms.aspx}}</ref>

Less than 2% of the [[Forest|native forest]] now remains, concentrated in the [[Black River Gorges National Park]] in the south-west, the Bambous Mountain Range in the south-east, and the Moka-Port Louis Ranges in the north-west. There are some isolated mountains, [[Corps de Garde]], [[Le Morne Brabant]], and several [[Islets of Mauritius|offshore islands]], with remnants of coastal and mainland diversity. Over 100 species of plants and animals have become extinct and many more are threatened. Conservation activities began in the 1980s with the implementation of programmes for the reproduction of threatened bird and plant species as well as habitat restoration in the national parks and nature reserves.<ref>{{Cite book|publisher=National Parks and Conservation Services, Government of Mauritius|title=Chapter 1. Introduction to the Republic of Mauritius|access-date=22 January 2015|url=http://npcs.govmu.org/English//DOCUMENTS/CHAP1.PDF|archive-date=3 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403104113/http://npcs.govmu.org/English//DOCUMENTS/CHAP1.PDF}}</ref>

In 2011, the Ministry of Environment & Sustainable Development issued the "Mauritius Environment Outlook Report," which recommended that St Brandon be declared a [[Marine protected area]]. In the President's Report of the [[Mauritian Wildlife Foundation]] (MWF) dated March 2016, St Brandon is declared an official MWF project to promote the conservation of the atoll.<ref>{{Cite web|title=President's Report of the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation dated March 2016|url=http://www.mauritian-wildlife.org/application/includes/common/download.php?type=11&record=4E911EA9-BE8F-FB3C-1025-8CFF6C9D3136|access-date=29 August 2017}}</ref>

The [[Mauritian flying fox]] is the only remaining mammal endemic to the island, and has been severely threatened in recent years due to the government sanctioned culling introduced in November 2015 due to the belief that they were a threat to fruit plantations. Prior to 2015 the lack of severe cyclone had seen the fruit bat population increase and the status of the species was then changed by the [[International Union for Conservation of Nature|IUCN]] from Endangered to Vulnerable in 2014. October 2018, saw the authorisation of the cull of 20% of the fruit bat population, amounting to 13,000 of the estimated 65,000 fruit bats remaining, although their status had already reverted to Endangered due to the previous years' culls.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Welcome to the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation (MWF) – In The Field – Mauritius – Mauritius Fruit Bat|url=http://www.mauritian-wildlife.org/application/index.php?tpid=30&tcid=81|access-date=22 February 2019|website=mauritian-wildlife.org|archive-date=16 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160316190712/http://www.mauritian-wildlife.org/application/index.php?tpid=30&tcid=81}}</ref>