FRAGILE EDEN : PORTRAITS OF THE ENDEMIC FLOWERING PLANTS OF THE GRANITIC SEYCHELLES

Wise, Rosemary

ISBN 10: 0691048177 / ISBN 13: 9780691048178

Published by Princeton University Press, Georgetown, On, Canada, 1998

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Bibliographic Details

• Title: FRAGILE EDEN : PORTRAITS OF THE ENDEMIC FLOWERING PLANTS OF THE GRANITIC SEYCHELLES
• Publisher: Princeton University Press, Georgetown, On, Canada
• Publication Date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0691048177
• ISBN 13: 9780691048178
• Binding: hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition.
• Condition: Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Fine
• Seller catalogs:
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About this title

Synopsis

This text transports readers to a band of ancient and remote islands located 1000 miles off the coast of Africa. These islands, the Seychelles, ahve been geologically isolated for more than 70 million years. They include the only islands in the world that are formed of granite. In their long isolation, the native flora of these 32 granitic islands remained untouched until the late 18th century. Since then, however, inroads have been made in their natural environment by human settlement, by the introduction of cinnamon and its rapid spread over many of the islands and by present-day tourism. Slowly these fragile plants have been overrun and many are now endangered. Most of the plants first described 100 years ago are still found today, but many are becoming increasingly rare. Some cling to existence with only a few specimens to be found, often in remote locations. In 1985 the Oxford University Biological Expedition to the Seychelles studied the vegetarian on several of the islands. Rosemary Wise, the department's artist, was asked to accompany the expedition. She became alarmed that the rapidly disappearing species might go unrecorded and made it her mission for the next 10 years to

About the Author

Rosemary Wise is the botanical artist in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Oxford. She has traveled widely to draw and paint plants throughout the world. On a freelance basis, she has worked regularly for the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and has contributed illustrations to numerous books and journals. In 1995 the Linnean Society of London awarded her the Jill Smythies Medal for published botanical illustration.