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Mauritius (right) and Réunion (left)
Mauritius (right) and Réunion (left)

The Mascarene Islands (or Mascarenhas Archipelago) is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar comprising Mauritius, Réunion, Rodrigues, Cargados Carajos shoals, plus the former islands of the Saya de Malha, Nazareth and Soudan banks. Mauritius (pronounced məˈrɪʃəs L’île Maurice /il mɔ'ʁis/ Mauritian Creole: Maurice) officially the Republic of Mauritius, République Réunion ( French: Réunion or formally La Réunion; previously Île Bourbon) is an island located in the Indian Ocean, east of An island (ˈaɪlənd or isle (/ˈaɪl/ is any piece of land that is completely surrounded by water in two dimensions above high tide and isolated from other significant The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's Oceanic divisions covering about 20% of the water on the Earth 's surface Madagascar, or Republic of Madagascar (older name Malagasy Republic) is an Island nation in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern Mauritius (pronounced məˈrɪʃəs L’île Maurice /il mɔ'ʁis/ Mauritian Creole: Maurice) officially the Republic of Mauritius, République Réunion ( French: Réunion or formally La Réunion; previously Île Bourbon) is an island located in the Indian Ocean, east of Rodrigues, ( Rodriguan Creole: Zil Rodrigues) named after the Portuguese explorer Diogo Rodrigues, is the smallest of the Mascarene Islands Cargados Carajos Shoals (also known as the Saint Brandon Rocks) are a group of about 16 small islands and islets on an extended Reef in the Indian Ocean The Saya de Malha Bank (also Sahia de Malha Bank Modern Portuguese saia de malha, English mesh skirt) is a large submerged bank in the Indian Nazareth Bank is a large undersea bank in the Indian Ocean, part of the vast undersea Mascarene Plateau. The Soudan Banks are a group of underwater high points and reefs off the coast of Africa, known for their good Fishing and administered by Mauritius. The collective title is derived from the Portuguese navigator Pedro Mascarenhas, who first visited them in 1512. Pedro Mascarenhas ( 1470 - June 23, 1555) was a Portuguese explorer and colonial administrator The islands share a common geologic origin in the volcanism of the Réunion hotspot beneath the Mascarene Plateau and form a distinct ecoregion with a unique flora and fauna. The Réunion hotspot is a Volcanic hotspot which currently lies under the Island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean. The Mascarene Plateau is an undersea Plateau in the Indian Ocean, north and east of Madagascar. An ecoregion ( ecological region) sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area smaller than a "realm" or "

Contents

Nature

Geology

Piton de la Fournaise
Piton de la Fournaise

The Mascarene Islands are volcanic in origin; Saya de Malha (35 ma) was the first of the Mascarene islands to rise out of the Indian Ocean due to the Réunion hotspot, followed by Nazareth Bank (some 2,000 yrs later), Soudan Bank and Cargados Carajos. Piton de la Fournaise ( French) "Peak of the Furnace" is a Shield volcano on the eastern side of Réunion island (a French territory Plate tectonics and hotspots Divergent plate boundaries At the The Réunion hotspot is a Volcanic hotspot which currently lies under the Island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean. The youngest islands to form were Mauritius (7-10 ma), the oldest of the existing islands, created along with the undersea Rodrigues ridge. The islands of Rodrigues and Réunion were created in the last two million years. Réunion is the largest of the islands (2,500 km²), followed by Mauritius (1,900 km²) and Rodrigues (110 km²). Nazareth and Soudan were completely submerged, Cargados Carajos remaining as a coral atoll. Eventually Saya de Malha, [1] The Réunion hotspot was beginning to cool and Rodrigues came out as a tiny island. Had erosion not taken place, Cargados Carajos would have been a large volcanic island, and the Mascarenes would have been an archipelago of seven or more (counting Saya De Malha, Nazareth and Soudan) large, populated islands, rather than the three (Mauritius, Reunion, Rodrigues) that remain today.

Réunion is home to the highest peaks in the Mascarenes, the shield volcanoes Piton des Neiges (3,069 m) and Piton de la Fournaise (2,525 m). A shield volcano is a large Volcano with shallow-sloping sides The Piton des Neiges (Snow Peak is a massive 3069 m (10069 ft Shield volcano on Réunion, one of the volcanic islands in the Mascarene Archipelago in Piton de la Fournaise ( French) "Peak of the Furnace" is a Shield volcano on the eastern side of Réunion island (a French territory Piton de la Fournaise, on the southeastern corner of Réunion, is one of the most active volcanoes in the world, erupting last on August 13, 2004. Events 3114 BC - According to the Lounsbury correlation the start of the Maya calendar. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire (828 m) is the highest peak on Mauritius, and the gentle hills of Rodrigues rise to only 390 m. Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire is the tallest mountain on the island of Mauritius,in the Indian Ocean.

The Mascarene Plateau is an undersea plateau that extends approximately 2000 km, from the Seychelles to Réunion. The Mascarene Plateau is an undersea Plateau in the Indian Ocean, north and east of Madagascar. Seychelles (seɪˈʃɛl or /seɪˈʃɛlz/ in English and seʃɛl in French) officially the Republic of Seychelles (République des Seychelles Creole The plateau covers an area of over 115,000 km² of shallow water, with depths ranging from 8 to 150 meters, plunging to 4000 m to the abyssal plain at its edges. Abyssal plains are flat or very gently sloping areas of the deep Ocean basin floor The southern part of the plateau, including the Saya de Malha Bank, Nazareth Bank, Soudan Banks and Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon) (then one large island), was formed by the Réunion hotspot. The Saya de Malha Bank (also Sahia de Malha Bank Modern Portuguese saia de malha, English mesh skirt) is a large submerged bank in the Indian Nazareth Bank is a large undersea bank in the Indian Ocean, part of the vast undersea Mascarene Plateau. The Soudan Banks are a group of underwater high points and reefs off the coast of Africa, known for their good Fishing and administered by Mauritius. Cargados Carajos Shoals (also known as the Saint Brandon Rocks) are a group of about 16 small islands and islets on an extended Reef in the Indian Ocean These were once volcanic islands, much like Mauritius and Réunion, which have now sunk or eroded to below sea level or, in the case of the Cargados Carajos, to low coral islands. The Saya de Malha Bank formed 35 million years ago, and the Nazareth Bank and the Cargados Carajos shoals after that. Limestone banks found on the plateau are the remnants of coral reefs, indicating that the plateau was a succession of islands. Limestone is a Sedimentary rock composed largely of the Mineral Calcite ( Calcium carbonate: CaCO3 Coral reefs are Aragonite structures produced by living organisms found in marine waters with little to no nutrients in the water Some of the banks may have been islands as recently as 18,000 - 6,000 years ago, when sea levels were as much as 130 meters lower during the most recent ice age. An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets

Mascarene forests

The Mascarene islands form a distinct ecoregion, known as the Mascarene forests. An ecoregion ( ecological region) sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area smaller than a "realm" or " The islands were formerly covered in tropical moist broadleaf forest and harbored a diverse range of forest types. Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF also known as tropical moist forests, are a Tropical and Subtropical Forest Near the seacoast were coastal wetlands and swamp forests, transitioning to rain forest to windward and lowland dry forest to leeward, palm savannas, montane deciduous forests, and montane heathlands on the highest peaks of Réunion. A wetland is an area of Land consisting of Soil that is Saturated with Moisture, such as a Swamp, Marsh, or Bog A savanna or savannah is a Tropical or Subtropical Grassland or Woodland Ecosystem.

The islands are home to many endemic plants and animals. Endemism is the Ecological state of being unique to a place Endemic species are not naturally found elsewhere Most of the Mascarene flora and fauna is thought to be derived originally from Madagascar and Africa. Madagascar, or Republic of Madagascar (older name Malagasy Republic) is an Island nation in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern The islands have never been connected to the mainland, so the flora and fauna of the Mascarenes arrived from over the sea. Prehistoric islands of the Mascarene Plateau, now disappeared under the sea, may have served as 'stepping stones' which allowed species to island-hop from the Seychelles or Madagascar. The Mascarenes are home to one endemic family of flowering plants, Psiloxylaceae, which has only one species, Psiloxylon mauritianum. The flowering plants or angiosperms ( Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta) are the most widespread group Psiloxylon mauritianum is species of Flowering plant, the sole species of family Psiloxylaceae. Psiloxylon mauritianum is species of Flowering plant, the sole species of family Psiloxylaceae. Until Europeans first settled the islands in the sixteenth century, no peoples were known to exist in the Mascarenes, so much of the island's wildlife, which would have gone extinct much earlier had any native people lived there, were still flourishing during the early days of settling.

The islands have no native mammals, except for bats. Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands Sixteen endemic bird species survive on the islands. Many of the Mascarene birds evolved into flightless forms; the most famous of which was the Dodo, an extinct flightless pigeon of Mauritius. The dodo ( Raphus cucullatus) was a Flightless bird endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. In Biology and Ecology, extinction is the cessation of existence of a Species or group of taxa. Mauritius, Réunion, and Rodrigues were also once each home to one or more species of giant tortoises, now extinct, which comprised the genus Cylindraspis. Giant tortoises are characteristic reptiles of certain tropical islands UserPolbot. --> Cylindraspis is a genus of recently extinct giant Tortoises. There are thirteen living endemic reptile species, including a number of species of day geckoes (genus Phelsuma). Geckos are small to average sized Lizards belonging to the family Gekkonidae which are found in warm climates throughout the world A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic Day Geckos are small Lizards of the genus Phelsuma in the Gecko family

Much of the native Mascarenes' flora and fauna has become endangered or extinct since the human settlement of the islands in the 17th century. As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 17th Century was that Century which lasted from 1601 - 1700 in the Gregorian calendar Settlers cleared most of the forests for agriculture and grazing, and introduced many exotic species, including pigs, rats, cats, monkeys, and mongooses. Pigs, also called hogs or' swine', are Ungulates which have been domesticated as sources of food leather and similar products since ancient times Rats are various medium sized long-tailed Rodents of the superfamily Muroidea WikipediaManual of Style (spelling, articles should conform to one overall spelling style of English typically the one most linked to the article topic (if it is geographic A monkey is any member of either the New World monkeys or Old World monkeys two of the three groupings of Simian Primates the third group being A mongoose (plural mongooses) is a member of the family Herpestidae (although also used for some members of Eupleridae) a family of small Fourteen bird species became extinct; in addition to the Dodo, some of the other extinct species are the Rodrigues Solitaire, a flightless pigeon related to the Dodo, and the Réunion Flightless Ibis. The Rodrigues Solitaire ( Pezophaps solitaria) was a flightless member of the Pigeon order endemic to Rodrigues, Mauritius The Réunion Sacred Ibis or Réunion Flightless Ibis (see below ( Threskiornis solitarius) is an extinct bird species that was native to the island

The Tambalacoque (Sideroxylon grandiflorum), often called the dodo tree, is also threatened with extinction, though the extent to which it depended on the dodo for reproduction, its seeds germinating only after passing through the extinct bird's digestive tract, has been challenged. Tambalacoque ( Sideroxylon grandiflorum; formerly Calvaria major) also called the Dodo Tree, is a long-lived tree in the family Sapotaceae

Historic colonies

The early colonial history of the islands, like that of the Caribbean, is a confusing story of takeovers between the rivalling Portuguese, Dutch, French and British colonizers, usually separate or in varying combinations, sometimes even with distant other colonies, e. g. in the East Indies.

The French succeeded in establishing a permanent hold. From 4 June 1735 to 23 March 1746, a single French Mascarene Islands chartered colony under one gouverneur général (governor general) contained Île de France (Mauritius), Île Bourbon (Réunion) and Séchelles (the Seychelles). Île-de-France ( pronounced /il d̪ə fʁɑ̃s/ literally "Island of France" is one of the twenty-six administrative regions of France. Réunion ( French: Réunion or formally La Réunion; previously Île Bourbon) is an island located in the Indian Ocean, east of Seychelles (seɪˈʃɛl or /seɪˈʃɛlz/ in English and seʃɛl in French) officially the Republic of Seychelles (République des Seychelles Creole On 14 July 1767 this becomes a French crown colony, still under one gouverneur général. The term governor general or governor-general refers to a vice-regal representative of a Monarch in an independent realm or a major colonial circonscription From 3 February 1803 till 2 September 1810 the French colony of Indes-Orientales, under a capitaine général, includes Île de la Réunion and [nominally] the Séchelles [Seychelles]).

Islands and Banks

Mauritius

Mauritius was formed 8-10 million years ago, and is geographically one of the oldest remaining islands in the group. Mauritius (pronounced məˈrɪʃəs L’île Maurice /il mɔ'ʁis/ Mauritian Creole: Maurice) officially the Republic of Mauritius, République It was discovered in the 10th century, but the first permanent settlement was by the Dutch in 1638. It was seized by France in 1715, who remained in control until the British took over in 1810. Mauritius gained independence in 1968.

Rodrigues

Rodrigues was formed at around the same time as Mauritius. Rodrigues, ( Rodriguan Creole: Zil Rodrigues) named after the Portuguese explorer Diogo Rodrigues, is the smallest of the Mascarene Islands It was first discovered by the Arabs but named after Portuguese navigator Diogo Rodrigues. It was Dutch in 1601 and settled by the French in 1691. Britain took possession of Rodrigues in 1809. When Mauritius gained independence in 1968, Rodrigues was forcefully joined to it. Rodrigues remains an autonomuos region of Mauritius.

Réunion

Réunion was discovered first by the Arabs then by the Portuguese, who named it Santa Apollonia. Réunion ( French: Réunion or formally La Réunion; previously Île Bourbon) is an island located in the Indian Ocean, east of It was then occupied by the French as part of Mauritius. It was given its current name in 1793. From 1810 to 1815 it was held by the British, before being returned to France. Réunion became an overseas department of France in 1946.

Cargados Carajos

Cargados Carajos is the remnant of one or more large volcanic islands which sank with the rising tides. Cargados Carajos Shoals (also known as the Saint Brandon Rocks) are a group of about 16 small islands and islets on an extended Reef in the Indian Ocean Today it is administered by Mauritius.

Saya de Malha

Saya de Malha Bank is a large, submerged bank. Historically it was a group of volcanic islands, and was joined to the Great Chagos Bank until a continental drift pushed them apart.

Soudan Banks

Sounan Banks are a group of low-lying banks on the Mascarene Plateau. The Mascarene Plateau is an undersea Plateau in the Indian Ocean, north and east of Madagascar.

Nazareth Bank

Nazareth Bank is located just north of Cargados Carajos, and historically they were a single geological feature. Today is is a large, shallow fishing bank.

Hawkins Bank

Hawkins Bank is located on the northernmost point of the Mascarene Plateau. The Mascarene Plateau is an undersea Plateau in the Indian Ocean, north and east of Madagascar.

References

External links

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