For more than twenty years, the MWF’s permanent station on the Île Ronde nature reserve has enabled teams to take turns every three to five weeks, working to safeguard and restore the ecosystem, analyze problems and find solutions. It’s time for an ecological assessment.
Delphine Raimond
To deal with the proliferation of invasive species on the islet – both plant and animal – Vikash (MWF’s Conservation Manager) first explains that a very strict quarantine procedure is in place. Professional and personal equipment transported on site, as well as clothing and footwear, are systematically examined with a fine-tooth comb! Did you know, for example, that Velcro carries a lot of threatening foreign bodies? That a simple little tomato or cucumber seed… left in the digestive tract or inadvertently brought onto the site by man is a threat? That insects, ants, snails… are invasive? That pigs, rabbits and other bovids – introduced to all the world’s islets in the early 19th century to serve as a larder for would-be castaways – have destroyed many ecosystems? That the goats on Île Ronde were eradicated by the scientific community in 1979, as were the rabbits in 1986?
I then ask Vikash about the reasons for this eradication, naively wondering how these animals could have so seriously damaged the ecosystem? “By feeding on the plants found there and blocking their natural regeneration. As herbivores, these animals almost destroyed the forest. The loss of vegetation meant the loss of the soil, of its soil, of all its vegetation cover! This enormous erosion was compounded by climatic factors. The island is largely sloping, and as soon as it rains, tons of soil are washed out to sea! All these factors have reduced the environment in which plants can grow, leading to the disappearance of non-invasive species, deprived of food and habitat to protect themselves! I learn that endemic turtles and other reptiles were present on Île Ronde as early as the 1800s, up until the mid-70s. The last sighting of the world’s only burrowing boa was in 1975! Vikash explains that many species that have disappeared from the mainland have survived for a long time on certain islets.
The subject of poaching then enters the conversation; my interlocutor is proud to announce that the practice has been halted on Île Ronde since 1996. According to him, it’s a combination of factors. “Firstly, I believe that poaching has decreased naturally, thanks to awareness-raising and a change in society’s attitude, coupled with a lower demand for poached products. Secondly, the mere fact that the MWF is permanently stationed on the island has greatly discouraged poachers. When the goats and rabbits were eradicated, we also saw less incitement to hunt and poach. Finally, the scientific teams arrive on the island with the police helicopter or the National Coast Guard boat… which is quite a deterrent, too!”
Three financial partners now support the conservation program: the government, the MWF and the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust. In conclusion, Vikash tells me that, although the work carried out on the islet over the past 50 years still requires a great deal of action and investment, the results are very encouraging! Poaching and hunting have been completely halted. Species extinction has slowed considerably. The soil is better retained, and plant life is able to redevelop. Thousands of trees, shrubs, endemic and indigenous species have been replanted. Wildlife is thriving, with skinks, geckos, seabirds… back in their natural habitat and reptile populations multiplying. One endemic species even survives in this natural environment: the Casarea dussumieri, also known as the Casarea dussumieri. boa on Île Ronde.
What better testimony to the efficient and resilient collaboration between man and nature?
