BirdLife From near extinction in the 1970s, the Mauritius Kestrel population has grown to between 800 and 1000 individuals Zoom In

Mauritius highway threatens flagship site

05-05-2005

Work has begun on a road which could devastate part of the forest heartland of the Mauritius Kestrel Falco punctatus, one of the world’s flagship conservation success stories. The South-Eastern Highway will pass through the Mauritius east coast mountains Important Bird Area (IBA), cutting a swathe through some of the last remaining good quality forest in this part of Mauritius.

The kestrel was once the world’s rarest bird. From near extinction in the 1970s, its population has grown to between 800 and 1000 individuals, thanks to a captive breeding and reintroduction programme run by the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation and the Government of Mauritius, working with international partners including the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust and The Peregrine Fund. The recovery of the Mauritius Kestrel is one of the world’s greatest species conservation success stories. The south-eastern forest is home to half the world population, centred around the Ferney Valley, where the first reintroductions took place. Ferney Valley is in the path of both proposed routes for the new highway.

"Kestrels hunt for geckos inside the forest and require a habitat with high tree canopy and little undergrowth for their survival," according to the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation (MWF), the island’s biggest conservation NGO. "This type of forest is typical of native forest and this area still contains a significant amount of relatively good habitat. Opening up the forest by building a road speeds up the invasion of the habitat by introduced species and leads to its rapid degradation, not only during the disturbance while the road is being built, but also afterwards, as it acts as a corridor for invasive animals and plants to travel along."

Another globally threatened species, the Mauritius Bulbul Hypsipetes olivaceus, will be affected by the road. Like the kestrel, the bulbul is dependent on native forests and will suffer from any reduction in habitat. A third threatened species, the Mauritius Cuckoo-shrike Coracina typica, disappeared from the mountain IBA a few decades ago, but following the success of the kestrel project has been proposed for reintroduction.

"The east coast mountains, with their forests and native wildlife, are one of the most unspoilt and diverse regions of this unique island, with numerous rare plant and animal species. It is impossible to see how this development could not be detrimental to the environment and biodiversity of Mauritius." —Roger Safford, BirdLife International

Two consultants have prepared advice on which of two routes is less environmentally damaging, and what could be done to mitigate or compensate for the damage done by the road. The Mauritian government has ruled out consideration of a third route which would skirt round the area, citing contractual penalties which would have to be paid to the contractors if the Ferney valley route were abandoned.

The road is funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB). The MWF has been lobbying both the government and the AfDB to consider alternative routes, or at very least to ensure that harm to the biodiversity of the area is minimised.

"AfDB’s message was very confusing," say the MWF. "On the one hand they say they will not finance a project they believe to be detrimental to the environment and biodiversity of a country, but the next minute they say the ball is in the court of your government..."

The MWF believe they have done all that is possible, and that it is now up to the wider international community to call on the Mauritian Government to adopt alternative routes or effective mitigation measures. BirdLife have written to the government expressing their concerns about the highway.