Palaeontologist resurrects the Dodo and the lost Garden of Eden (5/13/2008)

A study which offers a unique snapshot of man's dramatic impact on the planet is published in a new book this week.

Dr Julian Hume, a palaeontologist at the University of Portsmouth, has spent years studying the Mascarene Islands in the Indian Ocean and documenting the dozens of species which have become extinct since their discovery by man in the 1600s.

It is the first time someone has traced the ecological decline of a region from the moment man first set foot upon the land and offers an insight into the effect mankind can have on a fragile ecosystem in a very short timeframe.

His book, 'Lost land of the Dodo,' describes how early settlers effectively wiped out over half of the islands' wildlife in just a few hundred years. The study was possible because the settlers documented their discoveries and the changes they introduced.

He said: "The islands were once home to an extraordinary range of birds and reptiles which evolved in the absence of natural predators. The land was dominated by giant tortoises, flightless birds, huge parrots and of course the Dodo."

The ecology of the islands changed dramatically after colonisation by European settlers who slaughtered birds and tortoises and introduced rats, goats and deer and started clearing forests. Large flightless birds including the Dodo were gone within 60 years of the colonisation and over the next 150 years most of the Mascarene's other native vertebrates followed suit.

"We know that cats were introduced in 1690 and that ten years later a flightless bird we call the Red Hen had totally disappeared," said Dr Hume.

Dr Hume re-creates the lost species through dramatic paintings of extinct birds and mammals and the colourful illustrations feature in the book. His paintings portray a lost 'Garden of Eden,' rich in animal and birdlife which will never be seen again.

"We have comprehensive record of the animal species we've lost but there will be much more in the way of insects, flora and fauna which we will never know anything about," he said. Dr Hume's many visits to the islands have also resulted in his discovery of several fossil species new to science including a pigeon and a new variety of flightless Rail. "These are just some of the species that have become extinct of which we will never know anything about their appearance or habits, as they were never mentioned by the early mariners and explorers," he explains.

But despite the mountain of evidence the islands' wildlife is still under threat today. After a steady decline in sugar cane production, tourism is now taking over as the islands' largest source of income, and the resulting development may take a serious toll on a region which has already altered beyond recognition.

"It remains to be seen what further changes we will see," said Dr Hume.

The Lost land of the Dodo, co-authored by Anthony Cheke, is published by Poyser.

Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by the University of Portsmouth

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