Wildlife of Réunion

The wildlife of Réunion is composed of its flora, fauna and funga. Being a small island, it only has nine native species of mammals, but ninety-one species of birds.

Fauna

Birds

Mammals

• Mauritian flying fox, Pteropus niger VU
• Small Mauritian flying fox, Pteropus subniger EX
• Lesser yellow bat, Scotophilus borbonicus CR
• Natal free-tailed bat, Mormopterus acetabulosus VU
• Mauritian tomb bat, Taphozous mauritianus LC
• Southern right whale, Eubalaena australis^[1] LC, rarer in today's Réunion
• Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae LC
• Sei whale, Balaenoptera borealis EN
• Southern fin whale, Balaenoptera physalus quoyi EN^[1]
• Sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus VU
• Dwarf sperm whale, Kogia sima LR/lc
• Blainville's beaked whale, Mesoplodon densirostris DD
• Gray's beaked whale, Mesoplodon grayi DD
• Short-finned pilot whale, Globicephala macrorhynchus DD

Those mammals not native to Réunion include the tailless tenrec, dog, cat, pig, goat, sheep, rat and cattle.

Reptiles

Geckos

Seven species of day geckos and four species of night geckos:

• Réunion Island day gecko, Phelsuma borbonica borbonica, endemic
• Réunion Island ornate day gecko, Phelsuma inexpectata, endemic
• Gold dust day gecko, Phelsuma laticauda, introduced from Madagascar
• Lined day gecko, Phelsuma lineata, introduced from Madagascar
• Blue-tailed day gecko, Phelsuma cepediana, introduced from Mauritius around 1960^[2]
• Indopacific tree gecko, Hemiphyllodactylus typus, introduced
• Tropical house gecko, Hemidactylus mabouia, introduced
• Common house gecko, Hemidactylus frenatus, introduced
• Phelsuma madagascariensis, introduced from Madagascar in 1970 by a veterinarian^[3]
• Pacific gecko, Gehyra mutilata, introduced

Agamid lizards

• Oriental garden lizard, Calotes versicolor, introduced
• Rainbow agama, Agama agama, introduced around 1999/2000

Scincidae

• Bojer's skink, Gongylomorphus bojerii, introduced (originally endemic to Mauritius)
• Mauritius skink, Leiolopisma mauritiana, extinct around 1600

Chameleons

• Panther chameleon, Furcifer pardalis, introduced from Madagascar

Snakes

Two introduced species;

• Brahminy blind snake, Typhlops braminus
• Indian wolf snake, Lycodon aulicus, introduced from Mauritius around 1850

Turtles

Marine turtles

see also:^[4]

• Green sea turtle, Chelonia mydas
• Hawksbill sea turtle, Eretmochelys imbricata
• Loggerhead sea turtle, Caretta caretta
• Olive ridley sea turtle, Lepidochelys olivacea
• Leatherback sea turtle, Dermochelys coriacea

Land turtles

• Réunion giant tortoise, Cylindraspis indica, became extinct 1800
• Radiated tortoise, Astrochelys radiata, introduced from Madagascar

Molluscs

Fungi

See also

• List of birds of Réunion
• List of mammals of Réunion
• List of extinct animals of Réunion

References

• "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Mammals of Réunion". IUCN. 2001. Retrieved 22 May 2007.^{[dead link]}
• "Mammal Species of the World". Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. 2005. Archived from the original on 27 April 2007. Retrieved 22 May 2007.
• "Animal Diversity Web". University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. 1995–2006. Retrieved 22 May 2007.
• Lepage, Denis. "Checklist of birds of Réunion". Bird Checklists of the World. Avibase. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 27 April 2007.
• Clements, James F. (2000). Birds of the World: a Checklist. Cornell University Press. p. 880. ISBN 0-934797-16-1.

This page was last edited on 21 January 2024, at 09:44