Île Ronde, Mauritius

Without the trees to populate and cover the land, Round Island's topsoil could easily be eroded by wind or rain, effectively making it an ecological wasteland.

With this in mind, Vinson made it clear that eradicating the invasive rabbits and goats was paramount to ensuring the long-term survival of the Round Island flora and fauna.

[3] By the time both goats and rabbits had been eradicated from Round Island, Gerald Durrell and the DWCT had negotiated a conservation agreement with the new government (in 1984) that initially focused on the endemic vertebrates, but led to a closer relationship that "helped create the local capacity and infrastructure for effective species management".

This is especially stark for the four endemics Latania loddigesii, Dictyosperma album, Pandanus vandermeerschii and Hyophorbe lagenicaulis, which constituted a large portion of the Round Island forest historically.

This has led to six reptile species recovering in tandem with the plant community; these are the skinks Leiolopisma telfaririi and Gongylomorphus bojerii, the geckos Phelsuma guentheri, P. ornata and Nactus serpensinsula, and the snake Casarea dussumieri.