Kristin met a woman here who is former Fulbrighter who has a friend who works for the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation. This is the organization that I’ve been sporadically emailing with about possibly allowing me access to some remote areas of the island to record the more rare endemics. Apparently, this woman, who helps hand rear the very rare Mauritian kestrel, mentioned that the Foundation was very excited because there is a man coming to record bird sounds. Kristin said, “Oh, I think that’s my husband”. Small island. Anyway, I spoke with her today and she is going to put me into contact with someone who will, indeed, get me into the interior of some of the National Parks. In the meantime, I’m figuring out how to get into the parks the old fashioned way, as a tourist. Although I may not come into contact with the very rare species, there are plenty of other birds and fauna to record.
I set off this morning for the Black River Gorges National Park to scout out the potential of a daily commute. After a one-hour bus ride to the access road, I began hiking towards the park’s entrance. The microclimates on this island are drastic. Compared to the hustle and bustle of the tourist town that we live in, the area surrounding the park is rich in vegetation and island creatures. Volcanic spikes draped with low-lying cloud formations surround the road on all sides. The tropical vegetation begins to thicken as the road gets closer to the entrance. After walking for about 3.5 kilometers, I run into an obstacle; that obstacle being a locked gate with a sign reading “Park closed due to flooding”. Apparently, the past few days of rain have put me out of business. A couple of tourists also hover near the gate. One of them is Mauritian and I ask her if this is normal. She tells me no, and that the park is almost never closed. This boosts my spirits. They offer me a ride back, but I decline in favor of walking back with the hopes of seeing some new bird species. I’m relieved. One of my biggest concerns was figuring how to transport myself into the park on a daily basis. Now I know that it’s only two hours each way, which leaves me with a good chunk of time to dedicate to finding birds and getting them to sing to me.
October 24, 2009 at 12:29 am |
I remember it was good to know that flood is inondation in French.