Bertarelli Summer2024 FINAL - Flipbook - Page 45
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began and are now nesting in the thousands. The
mangroves host large frigatebird colonies and boobies. Vast numbers of waders and migrating birds use
Aldabra’s tidal pools, including a rare oceanic population of flamingoes.
The atoll is also home to several endemic land species, including the West Indian Ocean’s only flightless
bird, the white-throated rail.
Aldabra is world-famous for its marine ecosystems
and has the Seychelles’ largest area of coral reef, supporting the highest apex marine predator abundance
in the region and a high fish biomass. We have humpbacks, orcas, and many other large marine mammals
that migrate through the reserve and it’s also a sanctuary for the Seychelles’ last dugongs.
RE W I L D I NG
Vikash, you mentioned the idea of bringing back extinct
species. What do you say to people who argue we
should focus on what we have currently available,
rather than the past?
Tatayah: I think it’s not really a choice. We have to do
what we can to protect the current biodiversity. We have
nearly 170 species of plants that are going extinct on
Mauritius. These are single-island and endemic plants.
So we need to work on those urgently. But the way I
think about it is that we have a toolbox to help protect biodiversity, and we need to use every single tool
we’ve got, including bringing back species. The dodo is
a famous example, but we’ve lost tortoises, we’ve lost
rails—in fact we’re thinking we could bring back the
white-throated rails from Aldabra to Mauritius, just like
we did the tortoises, to fill that niche. Ultimately, we’re
looking at restoring the ecosystems and their food webs.
It’s a big picture that we need to build back as best as
possible. Now, some things are gone forever. But if there
is a chance to work to restore a species, then we need to
do it to help build our islands’ resilience, especially to
climate change. We don’t have a choice.
It sounds like paradise.
Raguain: But Aldabra is not pristine. Rats have greatly
impacted its ecosystem in a myriad of ways. One of
the most notable is the lack of ground-nesting seabirds except on the lagoon’s islands. Nor is Aldabra
immune to climate change’s impact, especially mass
coral bleaching events. Something that we could do
right now to help Aldabra is to eradicate the cats and
rats from the atoll.
But why should you care about Aldabra? It may
seem isolated, but it is in the middle of the fast-moving south equatorial current. My colleagues at Oxford
University have been investigating coral larvae dispersal using high resolution ocean current models to
predict where coral larvae formed at Aldabra travel to
and a vast amount of it ends up on East African coasts.
This coast is home to more than 50 million people
who depend on these corals and the fish for food and
for jobs. So an eradication that leads to the restoration
of Aldabra Island can bring real benefits to this region.
The first time I went to Aldabra, I was 19 and part
of the Seychelles’ Island Foundation’s first eradication. Since then, we’ve put in place strong biosecurity
measures to prevent new invasions and we’re looking
at how to best eradicate the cats and rats. Because of
my experience, I know science and action can move
mountains. The Seychelles and other island states
need to stand a chance when it comes to the ecological and climate crises we face.
You have very personal connections to the places you
work in. How does that connection to place inspire
your work?
Tatayah: I actually fell into this a little by accident. I
didn’t start out in conservation, I started in agriculture. But once I got involved in conservation I realized
I could make something of my life and do something
meaningful. I live in this world after all.
Raguain: Being outside was a big part of my childhood,
but for me, the real eureka moment happened when I
first went to Aldabra. It took my breath away. I realized
I wanted to do this all the time. But now, I think a lot
about climate change and the ecological crisis we find
ourselves in. It’s a matter of survival on some level, but
it’s also about having the right to thrive.
CorEtta GranBErry is the administrator of the Bertarelli
Foundation’s Marine Science program, an interdisciplinary
science and conservation program focused on the Indian Ocean
region. Her previous research experience focused on coral reef
restoration and the principles of environmental sustainability.
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