Using Mauritius a model island. The techniques that are developed during this study, and the understanding of the effectiveness of different management strategies, can be applied to other ecosystems, where native species are not so well studied, and where the impacts of mongooses or other predators need to be minimised cost effectively and efficiently. Introduction Mauritius is a small 29 by 39 mile Indian Ocean island. Along with Reunion and Rodrigues, it forms the Mascarene archipelago 550 miles from the east coast of Madagascar. Originally uninhabited, most ecological niches were filled by birds and reptiles.
Bats are the only native mammals.
Early in its history it was subjected to a wave of invasion by humans and associated faunas. The Portuguese introduced pigs and macaques, the Dutch introduced cats and rats, the French introduced deer as game. The final colonists, the British, introduced Indian species such as musk shrew and the small Indian mongoose to control rats in sugar cane fields. However, being generalist feeders, mongooses adapt easily, and are preying on native species which have only just managed to survive to the current day due to intensive conservation efforts. Mongooses have not been well studied.