Ecosystems

Forest loss on this island country occurred over a relatively brief span of time. Early Dutch sailors wiped out wildlife, including the famous dodo bird, but inflicted little actual damage on the forest. During the late 1700s and early 1800s, French colonists cleared large tracts of forest for sugar

Sugarcane is the major crop. In 2001, 5.8 million tons of cane were produced. Sugarcane occupies 36% of Mauritius' total land area and 70% of its cultivated land. It is an estate economy, with 21 large estates accounting for over half of the land cultivated. The 32,000 small operations account for

The coastal ecosystems of Mauritius island (1850 km², 20° S and 57° E, Indian Ocean) consist of lagoons, reefs, estuaries, mangroves, salt water wetlands, and sheltered bays. Fringing reefs almost completely surround the volcanic island, enclosing a series of lagoons of variable depths (1–4 m)