How the Pink Pigeon Escaped the Dodo's Fate

Isobel Shepherd-Smith has a nice article on The Times website about the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation and how it has been working to bring back native creatures from the brink of extinction. The article ticks many of the Last Chance To See boxes with mentions of Carl Jones, Dodos, Mauritius Kestrels, Pink Pigeons, Echo Parakeets, Gerald Durrell, Round Island, and Rodrigues.

In the Seventies the kestrel, the only raptor on the island, was one of the rarest birds in the world – only four lived in the wild. Today there are more than 800.

In 1980 the number of pink pigeons barely made double figures; 27 years later there were 380. In the 1980s the emerald green echo parakeet numbered little more than a dozen; now there are well over 300.
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“At the start of this conservation work in the 1970s the future of the endemic species in Mauritius and Rodrigues seemed bleak and many thought that few could be saved from extinction. Thirty years later the long-term conservation of all the Mascarene [Mauritius, Réunion and Rodrigues] endemics is within our grasp.”

Mauritius Island Life

Here's an excellent essay about the wildlife of Mauritius, written by by Mark Daffey and published on "The Smart Set - Grand Tour" page back in January. The essay covers Dodos, Pink Pigeons, Mauritius Kestrels, Echo Parakeets and more.

From a total of just nine of the endemic Pink Pigeons remaining in the wild in 1990, a successful captive breeding program has increased their numbers on Île aux Aigrettes to 94, out of an estimated 380 throughout Mauritius. Most of them can be found in the protected Black River Gorges — Mauritius’ only national park.
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While such feral animals are slowly being eradicated, the more than 30 staff who work on the island on any one day concentrate most of their efforts towards preserving native species, such as the Mauritius Fody, Echo Parakeet, Telfair’s Skink, and the Mauritius Kestrel, whose numbers had dropped to just four worldwide in 1974 (there are now more than 1,000).

Mauritius: Kestrels, Parakeets and Pigeons

Wildlife Extra.com reports on a VERY positive outlook for three Mauritius birds that featured in Last Chance To See, namely the Mauritius Kestrel, the Pink Pigeon and the Echo Parakeet. These numbers are looking very good, and have even resulted in the birds being downlisted by the IUCN from Critically Endangered to merely Endangered.

Mauritius Parakeet–a green parrot, males of which have a bright red bill - was once down to just 10 birds in the 1970s, but there are now some 320 birds living in the wild, and the IUCN has announced it has moved from Critically Endangered to Endangered. This good news for conservation adds to an increasing list of conservation success stories from the island of Mauritius, mostly due to the work of the Mauritius Wildlife Foundation and the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, who concentrate much of their conservation work there.

This is the third such downlisting to occur on Mauritius in recent years due to their efforts. In 2000, Pink Pigeon, down to just nine birds a decade earlier, was downlisted to Endangered and now numbers 400 birds. Likewise, Mauritius Kestrel, went from just four birds in 1974 and now numbers approximately 1,000 individuals.

Iain Gardner Animations

I thought I'd share these interesting animations by Iain Gardner from the UK.

Firstly, check out his film "Flight of the Dodo" which features Carl Jones talking about his work in Mauritius with the Pink Pigeon and Echo Parakeet.

And now, check out these "Sketchbook" animations of endangered animals such as Aye-Aye, Gorilla, Polar Bears and Rhinos. Iain says "These studies are as much about memory as they are observation. Memories are all we will have left of these species unless more is done to protect these wonderful creatures in the wild."

Aye-Aye Lemur

Gorilla

KAKAPO PARROTS - Bird escape puts natives at risk

Hawkes Bay Today with news of some feathered fugitives that could pose a threat to New Zealand's domestic parrot populations, including the Kakapos of course.

The parakeets that escaped from the Botanical Gardens in Napier could pose a threat to New Zealand's native parrot population, says Forest and Bird's conservation manager.

The parakeets have disappeared after a hole was cut in the side of their cage on the weekend. Napier police said talk of a bird smuggling ring was "pure speculation".

Kevin Hackwell said exotic birds should never be released to the wild because they could compete with native birds and harbour disease.

Native parrots in New Zealand include several species of parakeet (kakariki); the kea, the world's only alpine parrot; the kaka, a forest parrot; and the kakapo, one of the world's rarest birds.

Full story, and reward details here.

MAURITIUS - Dodos, Pink Pigeons, Echo Parakeets and Mauritius Kestrels

Here's the Financial Times with a report on the the bird life of Mauritius. "At worship in a forest cathedral" mentions Carl Jones and his remarkable efforts, and talks about all of the birds Douglas Adams mentions in Last Chance To See.

It was the home of the dodo until the Portuguese settled on the uninhabited island in the mid 17th century and drove the species to extinction but more recent birdlife that has been nearing oblivion has been a bit luckier.

The pink pigeon, a distant cousin of the dodo, the echo parakeet and the Mauritius kestrel have all had a reprieve, due largely to the work of the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation and the tireless efforts of conservationist Carl Jones, a scientific director of the foundation, who was greatly influenced by the work of naturalist Gerald Durrell.

ECHO PARAKEETS - Jason Malham

l'express.mu here with a profile of Jason Malham, coordinator of the Echo parakeet - the Grosse cateau verte- recovery programme on the island of Mauritius.

Jason was brought up on a diet of sports and nature. New Zealand is a land of mountains and valleys, an outdoor paradise, where one can practise hiking, climbing… So the young boy would accompany his father on hunting and fishing parties (not endangered species) and developed a strong link with nature.
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Then his destiny met that of the Kakapo, a flightless nocturnal parrot, which could have known the dodo’s fate without a preservation programme. It was a huge job to get the Kakapo out of the red. Like the Echo Parakeet here, each member of a family is carefully (and sometimes comically!) identified.
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[Now], coordinator of the Echo parakeet - the Grosse cateau verte- recovery programme in the island, Jason Malham came here four years ago. “I actually work on a seasonal basis for eight months, obviously during this bird’s breeding season.” The recovery programme, which started in1988, when the birds’ population had fallen to 12 and threatened to disappear completely, has proved one of the world’s most successful : there are about 270 now.

Full Profile here