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Historical Biology: An International Journal of Paleobiology Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ghbi20 Captive birds on Dutch Mauritius: bad-tempered parrots, warty pigeons and notes on other native animals Julian P. Humea & Ria Wintersbcd a Bird Group, Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, Akeman St, Tring, Herts HP23 6AP, UK b University Library Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands c World Parrot Trust, Hayle, Cornwall d Click for updates Artists for Conservation, Vancouver, Canada Published online: 27 Apr 2015.

To cite this article: Julian P. Hume & Ria Winters (2015): Captive birds on Dutch Mauritius: bad-tempered parrots, warty pigeons and notes on other native animals, Historical Biology: An International Journal of Paleobiology, DOI: 10.1080/08912963.2015.1036750 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08912963.2015.1036750

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Captive birds on Dutch Mauritius: bad-tempered parrots, warty pigeons and notes on other native animals Julian P. Humea* and Ria Wintersb,c,d aBird Group, Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, Akeman St, Tring, Herts HP23 6AP, UK; bUniversity Library Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands; cWorld Parrot Trust, Hayle, Cornwall; dArtists for Conservation, Vancouver, Canada (Received 5 February 2015; accepted 29 March 2015)

During the occupation of Mauritius by the Dutch in the seventeenth century, live dodos and other animals were transported to the east and west as curiosities and gifts by the Dutch East India Company. How these animals managed to survive these journeys, when human casualties on-board ship were so high, has remained a mystery. Here, we present for the first time a translation of the recently discovered report of Johannes Pretorius, who stayed on Mauritius from 1666 to 1669. Pretorius kept a number of now extinct birds in captivity, which was probably an experiment to ascertain their captive requirements prior to transportation. He also provides the first ecological details of some of the now-extinct birds and Mauritian giant tortoises, the impact of introduced animals, and highlights how little of the interior of Mauritius had actually been explored during this time. Keywords: Raven Parrot Lophopsittacus mauritianus; Mauritius Red Rail Aphanapteryx bonasia; Mauritius Blue Pigeon Alectroenas nitidissima; Mauritius Sheldgoose Alopochen mauritiana; Dodo; Dutch East India Company (VOC)

Introduction to the East Indies, which halved the duration of the voyage, The volcanic and isolated Mascarenes Islands, situated in interest in maintaining Mauritius as a second replenish- the southwestern Indian Ocean, comprise Mauritius, ment station was considered superfluous (Sleigh 2000); Re´union and Rodrigues. Arab traders were aware of the therefore, in 1658 the island was abandoned and the fort Mascarenes from around the fourteenth century (Hume destroyed. However, the presence of the English East India 2013), as were the Portuguese in the early sixteenth Company and a few Dutch shipping disasters persuaded century (Toussaint 1966; North-Coombes 1980), but the directors of the VOC to order its re-occupation in 1664 neither nation as far as known settled there. It was the (Moree 1998). Dutch, under Vice-admiral Wybrandt Warwijck, who Part of the duties of the new officials on Mauritius was claimed Mauritius for the Netherlands in 1598, after which to record the suitability of the island for agriculture, and the island was used as a replenishment station for Dutch report on the natural resources, especially the availability trading vessels en route to the East Indies (Moree 1998). of ebony (Sleigh 2000). The first Dutch commander of the Initially, the island was visited only periodically by Dutch second period of occupation Jacob van Nieuwland had ships, but with the increasing presence of French and died while on duty, so George Frederik Wreede was sent as

Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015 English traders, the Dutch in 1638 established a settlement his replacement in 1665 (Moree 1998). On 20 May 1666, at Fort Frederik Hendrik in the South-east Harbour (now the Council of The Cape made a decision about the annual Vieux Grand Port) (Floore and Jayasena 2010). Mauritius shipment of supplies to Mauritius. The supplies were to be was administered by the Dutch East India Company’s accompanied by several soldiers, a secunde [second-in- (VOC) eastern head office in Batavia (now Jakarta) on command] by the name of Dirck Jansz Smient, a Java, and food products such as cattle, deer, poultry, bookkeeper Jacob Granaet, as well as Johannes Pretorius, various fruits and vegetables and sugar were introduced who was going to be either a secunde or ziekentrooster (Sleigh 2000). A larger VOC replenishment station was [comforter of the sick], depending on the presence on established at The Cape of Good Hope in April 1652, as a Mauritius of a commander (at that moment it was halfway stopover point for ships travelling to and from uncertain if Wreede was present, missing or dead) Europe to South East Asia, which also took over (Pretorius 2014). On 27 June 1666, Smient, Granaet and administration of Mauritius (Moree 1998; Sleigh 2000). Pretorius sailed for Mauritius on the Hoogcarspel and Subsequently, Mauritius was considered an ‘outer arrived on 30 July, one month later (Liebbrandt 1901; establishment’ by the VOC directors at The Cape, with Barnwell 1948). Wreede was still actively in command little to offer other than ebony (Moree 1998). Furthermore, when they arrived, and satisfied with his secunde already after the discovery of the more economical Brouwer Route in service, Jan van Laar; therefore, Smient was given a

*Corresponding author. Email: [email protected]

q 2015 Taylor & Francis 2 J.P. Hume and R. Winters

different task and Pretorius was employed as zieken- when Wreede’s successor, Hubert Gerritsz Hugo, an ex- trooster (Liebbrandt 1901). pirate notorious for his cruelty (Moree 1998; Panyandee Granaet, who stayed for three months, and Smient and 2002), rounded up any slaves that he could catch. Pretorius, who remained for one and three years Therefore, in the late 1660s, and due in part to the threat respectively, wrote important accounts about the state of from runaway slaves, the interior of Mauritius remained Mauritius in the years 1666–1669. Our recent discovery of unexplored. It was still densely forested and virtually the report of Pretorius, which is by far the most impenetrable (Pitot 1905). Only the more open coastal and informative on the native fauna, is here translated and lowland vlaktes (plains or land with low relief), which transcribed for the first time. were concentrated in the east, south and southeast, were used for agriculture (Figure 1). Furthermore, the only option for traversing the island was by boat (Pitot 1905; Mauritius in 1666–1669 Cheke and Hume 2008). Although Pretorius, Granaet and Smient arrived on Mauritius during the command of Wreede, Wreede was subsequently absent for much of the time. After an initial Johannes Pretorius enthusiastic welcome, Wreede soon lost the respect of his Johannes Pretorius was baptised on 26 October 1642, in the men who petitioned against him, so in 1668 he was ordered Dutch Reformed Church in Ouddorp, on the mid-west coast back to The Cape to defend himself (Barnwell 1948; of the Netherlands (see Barnwell 1992; Pretorius 2014). In his Moree 1998). Van Laar took over command until 13 early twenties, he enrolled at Leiden University, but did not August 1668, followed by Smient until 31 October 1669. finish his study and enlisted with the VOC. On 17 December Both acting governors tried in vain to promote agriculture 1665, he was employed by the VOC as a soldier, and sailed to amongst the few freeburgers (farmers who were given land theCapeofGoodHopeontheNuissenburg. Pretorius left The and worked independently of the VOC), but failed due to Cape on 2 June 1666 and arrived at Mauritius on 30 July. plagues of rats, locusts and caterpillars (Barnwell 1948). Instructions from the council at The Cape and several reports Van Laar (in Moree 1998, p. 78) gave an insight into the and recommendations from the servants on Mauritius make it difficulties faced by the Dutch on Mauritius in 1668: clear that Pretorius was regarded as a gifted and well- Farming has been attempted several times, and has not educated man. He was even considered for the position of succeeded because, though the seed when sown sprouts up governor, but this did not happen. Pretorius wrote his report, beautifully, as soon as it has grown fairly high, it is either either partly or completely, on board the yacht Voerman as he burnt up by the sun or bitten off by the thousands or rats, left Mauritius with Smient on 9 December for The Cape, so it which eat the ears. is likely that it is based on his most recent memories; it is dated Wreede was reinstated in October 1669, taking over 15 December 1669. from Smient, but soon degenerated into an alcoholic. After three years’ service in Mauritius, in early 1670 Disillusioned with Mauritius and apparently trying to Pretorius got a job as assistant in the VOC council escape to the neighbouring island of Re´union, he drowned Secretary’s office at The Cape. In mid-1673, he married Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015 in early 1672 off the east coast (near present-day Belle Geertruida Meijnties of Hasselt, a three times widow whose Mare) (Moree 1998). During both periods of occupation, latest husband, Dirk Bosch of Amsterdam, had died on 31 Mauritius was used as a holding area for captured slaves March of that year (Barnwell 1992;Schoeman2011). The from Africa and Madagascar (Bissoondoyal and Servan- marriage may not have been a happy one, as it is said that sing 1989), but inevitably some escaped. Runaway slaves Geertruida had to leave her money and valuable properties had been a problem for the Dutch during the first Dutch with a friend, because Pretorius spent everything at the inn occupation and were still a problem in the second (Pitot (Schoeman 2011). Pretorius was financially comfortable 1905;Barnwell1948;Moree1998; Sleigh 2000). during this time and optimistic about his future, because in Wreede’s report (in Barnwell 1948, p. 43) of 1666 1674 he had bought a house and grounds, cattle, tools and November describes the situation: two slaves for 1500 guilders with a further credit of 3750 guilders, payable in equal shares over the next four years Seven blacks, including a woman, were still in hiding there, and had often been seen by men of the garrison (Schoeman 2011); this generous deal was organised through destroying an incredible number of cattle, and only using Smient. Pretorius was considered one of the great farmers of the humps and breast pieces, leaving the rest of the carcase The Cape, running a mixed agricultural and livestock farm. to rot by the way. There would be no possibility to capture Geertruida passed away in 1676, and he later married a these people alive, but they might be killed, if orders were sister of another successful Cape farmer, Gerrit Victor received in that direction. (Schoeman 2011). The slaves in the interior were considered a threat to Johannes Pretorius died during a period of cold the men of the garrison, a situation that would only change weather on 30 April 1694, when still a member of the Historical Biology 3 Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015

Figure 1. (Colour online) Map of Mauritius showing the place names mentioned in the text. The shaded area shows approximately where the Dutch had encountered feral livestock. Notice how little of the interior and the northern plains in 1666–1669 had been explored.

council (Barnwell 1992). The city of Pretoria in South Pretorius, Mauritius was in a transitional phase, having Africa was named after Johannes’ great-grandson Andries gradually changed from a near pristine island in 1598 to Pretorius (1798– 1853), who was the leader of the Boers one now suffering the effects of anthropogenic changes. and the creator of the South African Republic (Beck 2014). A full translation of Pretorius’s report is given in Appendix 1 (supplementary material), whereas in the following text we focus on key sections relevant to the fauna: The report of Pretorius Pretorius’s report (Figures 2 and 3) is extremely important. The island of Mauritius is a wild and rugged country, one mountain and valley is followed by another, as waves in He not only wrote about the native fauna and effects of the sea. Inbetween are rivers that supply the land with a lot introduced animals in detail, but also provides the only of water, but also cause it to be rich in stones, that are account known that describes keeping now-extinct everywhere. One finds only a few, small plains here and Mauritian bird species in captivity. During the time of there. The animals gather on the plains to bake in the 4 J.P. Hume and R. Winters Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015

Figure 2. (Colour online) Original handwritten account by Johannes Pretorius describing the native birds mentioned in the text. Red outline Dodaersen [Mauritian red rail Aphanapteryx bonasia ] and blue outline [Mauritius blue pigeon Alectroenas nitidissima ].

sunshine after the rain. The largest and most famous is the The deer are all over the island, but mostly in the area one with the lemon trees ‘Limoenbogaerd’ [present day around the lodge [Vieux Grand Port]. They grow very fat Ferney] and the one at the Vuijle Bocht [Poste de Flacq]. in April, May, June and July. In those months the males are I will speak of this [latter] one first, and also of the whole solitary, the females are pregnant and can be caught easily, island that is a size of 7 or 8 morgen [a large Dutch unit of but they are clever and hide in the forest. They are very shy measure]. The soil is of reasonably quality which is damp and seldom come within range of a gunshot. When the most of the time, caused by the water flowing from the Dutch first introduced deer to the island they were not so high mountain. This plain is situated at its foot... shy. When someone encountered a deer by accident, the animal would startle and sometimes run into a tree, so it ... On this plain many cattle come to graze. Cows, deer, could be caught by hand. Its meat does not keep well (like goats and pigs. The cows with humps on their backs (that all kinds of meat on the island) when just preserved in salt, work very well pulling the yoke) come here daily when the but if smoked afterwards it is agreeable. ripe fruits have fallen. They always come in the evenings and nights to graze (one hardly sees them in daytime). Goats are also here but at one mile from the lodge. In the When they came for the fruits, we tried to catch them by areas seven or eight miles from the lodge, the quantities of setting snares under the trees, but they are too smart for us these animals are indescribable. We cannot hunt there because of their acute sense of smell. because it is too far a distance to transport a dead animal Historical Biology 5

Figure 3. (Colour online) Original handwritten account by Johannes Pretorius describing the native birds mentioned in the text. Red outline [Raven or broad-billed parrot Lophopsittacus mauritianus ]; blue outline [Mauritius fruit bat Pteropus niger ] and black outline [Mauritius Sheldgoose Alopochen mauritiana ].

over land. We would have to go by sea and our sloop is not tortoise eggs. They don’t even leave ambergris unmolested, capable of this. especially when it is fresh. Almost all cattle are on the beaches and areas up to two or There are many land tortoises all year round on the plains. three miles inland. There are no cattle further inland Also in the mountains. They feed on dead leaves and apples. because it becomes very wet and swampy and overgrown Ships take them in as stock during their voyages. The with broad-leafed trees, so that the sun cannot dry the abundance of shells is testament to this. The meat is eaten, forest floor. If a lost animal strays into the forest, its horns but the best is the ‘suurse [cooked meat soaked in vinegar, and feet rot away because of the dampness. lemon juice and various spices]’ and the liver. Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015 The Westside, the Varsse Valley, the Bars Vlackte, the Now I have dealt with the plains and the four footed Stony Vlackte, and the Vuijle Bocht are notable for the animals, I will speak of the birds in the water or on land, abundance of cattle. In the Vuijle Bocht the abundance is like pigeons, dodaersen, parrots, Indian ravens, bats, largest, and it is smallest in the Varsse Valley. canary birds etc: or both [land and water], as in the Geese: the teals [Mascarene teal Anas theodori, extinct c.1700] At Kronenburg [Grand River South East] there are islands and waterhens [Mascarene coot Fulica newtonii, extinct ˆ [IIes aux Cerfs] with lots of cattle that reproduce quickly, c.1700] are always in the water, and all live together in which is an advantage when ships arrive that need to take peace and quiet. in meat supplies. We dry many hides in the sun, and they provide us with shoes. [Mauritius Red Rail Aphanapteryx bonasia,extinct c.1700] Pigs are here too, throughout the whole island, but especially on the beaches where the palmiste trees [Hurricane Palm The dodaers [Aphanapteryx bonasia ] is a red bird, as big Dictyosperma album ] are abundant. They also come to the as a fowl, has short wings and cannot fly. It scratches in the vlakte to eat the fallen fruit. They are usually thin except in earth with its sharp claws like a fowl to find food such as January and February, when the ebony and other trees drop worms under the fallen leaves. This bird is unbelievably their apples [Ebonys Diospyros sp. and some other Mauritian stupid. When one waves a stocking cap and makes a sharp tree genera produce green, apple-like fruit] to the ground. sound with the mouth, it immediately heads towards that There are many pigs which are easily found and captured. person, and if one carries a stick, all of them can be killed They are voracious, and when they chance upon a young with it without any escaping. They are fatty and greasy to stray goat, they will catch and devour it. That is why they also eat. They have a long, sharp beak which is slightly curved roam the beaches to look for slimy things, dead fish or at the end. 6 J.P. Hume and R. Winters

[Mauritius Blue Pigeon Alectroenas nitidissima, extinct be salted or smoked. The meat has a fine structure and a c.1837] natural taste. These animals come only to the shore after heavy rainfall, looking for seagrass which is their only food, The pigeons are beautiful in colour with crests on the head so they are not abundant and are difficult to come by. and warts on the face. I have tried to raise juveniles and to tame adults, but they always die under my hands. [Eels Anguilla sp.]

[Parrots] In the rivers there are not only small fish but unnaturally large and thick eels (if they may be called that). Once we Parrots are here too, there are many. Some are grass green shot one with a musket that was 6 foot long and 16 thumbs and small [Psittacula echo ], others are multi-coloured and thick, but an old specimen is tough and unpleasant to eat. large. The first mentioned could be caught with a net. They can be caught by attaching a piece of meat to a string We can sometimes catch them alive, but the others are too without a hook. We also have observed them trying to bite high in the trees and can hardly be caught. One never finds the feet off swimming ducks. their nests. [Raven or Broad-billed Parrot Lophopsittacus mauritianus, extinct c.1675] Jacob Granaet The Indian ravens are very beautifully coloured. They Jacob Granaet was a bookkeeper, and his original account, cannot fly and are not often found. This kind is a very bad tempered bird. When captive it refuses to eat. It would which was written up on 30 November 1666, was prefer to die rather than to live in captivity. transcribed and translated by Liebbrandt (1901). Granaet left The Cape with Pretorius for Mauritius on 27 June [Mauritius Fruit Bat Pteropus niger ] 1666. He arrived on 30 July at the Southeast harbour Bats are plentiful here. They are as big as an owl from the (Vieux Grand Port), stayed until 11 September, and fatherland. This bird has no feet. It is always in the air, returned to The Cape on 11 November after visiting flying, or hanging upside down in the trees on two hooked Madagascar. Unlike Pretorius’s report, which was written claws attached to its wings. After having given birth, this after a three-year stay, Granaet’s observations are derived bird carries its young and feeds it on its breast. The young even hang on the breast while in flight. The meat is fatty from a three-month sojourn. He describes the limited and tastes reasonably well. agriculture, but makes note about the escalating effects of introduced animals, including rats. His observation on the [Mauritius Sheldgoose Alopochen mauritiana, extinct surviving native birds is brief, but they do give an c.1700] indication as to their status: Geese are also here in abundance. They are a little larger than ducks, very tame and stupid, seldom in the water, The best spot hitherto found for the purpose [of agriculture], lies at a running river, about 11 hours on foot from the Lodge, eating grass, sometimes 40 or 50 or even a 100 together. 2 ... When they are being shot, the ones that are not hit by the and named the Great Lemon Garden [Limoenbogaerd] ; however, wheat, rye, oats, barley, &c., are very much hail stay put and do not fly away. They usually keep to the ... north side of the island, far away from where the people destroyed by rats, which are numerous there live, except in the dry season when they are forced to drink Within these forests dwell the parrots, paroquetes, turtle and on the other side of the island, and sometimes near the other wild doves, the mischievous and unusually large Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015 lodge. ravens, falcons, bats, and other birds, whose names the writer [Sea turtles and fish] does not know, never before having seen any. The ground of this wilderness serves as a shelter and lair for the cattle Now we have seen the profusion [of the above-mentioned (which have large humps near their necks), for harts, hinds, wildlife], let me dwell on the fish that are plentiful here, goats and pigs (the destroyers of the young cattle that are within the reef. Once, half a day to the west, our people running wildthere in all directions), and for the slow tortoises caught 7 or 800 large steenbrasems [Seabream] with the whose livers and eggs are considered great delicacies, and sloop. But they are not very nutritious to eat and laid in salt whose fat (with which the garrison is amply provided) is very they do not keep well, but when afterwards they are dried healthy and fit for use in food and other ways. harder in the wind they do keep well. The [mullet] is large, Waterfowls such as geese, teals, waterhens and flamingos but lean and dry. [Phoenicopterus roseus, extirpated c.1770], are found Sea turtles are numerous here too but mostly on the north among the marshes, and in large numbers; and, especially side of the island. Their eggs are incubated by the sun and the teals, are so tame that they can be killed with sticks; all are hot sand. They [the eggs] are round. fat and of good taste (Liebbrandt 1901,p.198). [Dugong Dugon dugong, extirpated c.1800]

There are also sea cows. I don’t know why they are so called Discussion because they do not look like cows. It is a misshapen animal, 9 or 10 feet long with a round shape. Its meat tastes The report by Pretorius provides the first information good, consisting of layers of lard and meat. This meat can about the ecology and diet of Mauritian giant tortoises, red Historical Biology 7

rails and geese. He also resolves a number of outstanding were still common on the plains and in the mountains, issues, most notably on how some of the Mauritian native where they fed on the fallen fruit of ebony trees and fallen fauna manage to survive alive on long sea voyages, when leaves. This is the only account that describes the diet and human fatalities were so high. The answer may well lie distribution of the Mauritian giant tortoises. The mainland with Pretorius’s experiments at keeping some of the birds populations seemed to have become scarce subsequently, in captivity. The VOC regularly sent exotic animals as with the last reports made around c.1721, but some still gifts or for trading during the seventeenth century (Winters survived on the off-shore islets, the last of which were and Hume 2015), so if the Dutch were keeping native collected a decade or so later (Cheke and Bour 2014). species in confinement on Mauritius as a matter of course, All species of Mascarene giant tortoise suffered the same their husbandry requirements could be perfected prior to fate as those on Mauritius; the last Cylindraspis were shipping. This would explain how dodos and other birds recorded on Rodrigues in c.1795 and on Re´union in c.1830 arrived alive in Europe and in the Far East. Most notably, (Cheke and Bour 2014). in 1647 the last recorded captive dodo, a gift for Japanese The Mauritius red rail was mentioned in a number of dignitary, survived the 6500 þ mile sea voyage from accounts, of which the more detailed describe this species’ Mauritius to Dejima, Japan (Winters and Hume 2015), attraction to the colour red or, more likely, to the waving of having been on-board ship for at least three months. The a piece of material (regardless of colour); this technique fact that exotic birds could be kept alive on sea voyages for could result in the capture of an entire flock of birds long periods is remarkable, as sea voyages were still a high (Mundy 1634; Herbert 1638; Cauche 1651; Marshall 1668 risk for mariners during the 1660s. For example, a report [in Khan 1927]; Hoffman 1680; this paper) (Figure 4). made during Pretorius’s stay on Mauritius provides a vivid Pretorius’s report also describes for the first time the description about the perils that sometimes beset crews, foraging behaviour and diet of the red rail. Although when the Ooievaar, a ship that had left Texel, Holland on worms [ ¼ soft invertebrates] were eaten, the red rail 29 April 1666, having called at Riau Island, Indonesia, on probably fed on the abundant terrestrial molluscs as well, 25 June, before arriving at Mauritius on 3 November as a number of shells of the extinct Mauritian snail (Liebbrandt 1901, p. 196). The report reads: Tropidophora carinata exhibit a puncture hole in a uniform position on the whorl close to the umbilicus 3 November 1666. Vessel sighted behind the Lion Mountain. Wind contrary, preventing her from reaching (Griffiths in Hume and Walters 2012). This wound has Port. Fired three guns; at once the sloops of the Beurs and been attributed to rail predation (Jones in Griffiths and Kauw and our own were sent to her assistance ... she was Florens 2006). The red rail appears to have remained the flute Oyevaer of Zealand, in a most desolate state, yea! comparatively common until the 1680s, but was described so much so, that if she had not received assistance, she in 1693 as rare (Leguat 1708). Their disappearance could not possibly have reached the roadstead and been saved, as there was not six healthy men on board, all being coincided with an increase of feral cats (Cheke and Hume ill in bed ... She had 178 men, of whom 48 had died, 2008), which are formidable predators of flightless or whilst more than 90 were laid up. Room was at once made ground-inhabiting birds (Hume and Walters 2012). This on shore for them, that they might land to-morrow and be was the last time the red rail was recorded. properly provided with accommodation and refreshments. Neither Granaet nor Pretorius mentioned true dodos. Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015 Mauritius, as well as Re´union and Rodrigues, once The dodaersen described by Pretorius are certainly harboured the densest populations of giant tortoises in the referable to the red rail and not the true dodo, which was world (Arnold 1979; Bour 1981). Mauritius had two presumably due to the similarly flightless red rail species, a browsing saddleback form Cylindraspis inheriting the name, purportedly as a result of the triserrata, and a domed form C. inepta, which grazed on extinction of the true dodo (Newton 1868, p. 480; Cheke low vegetation. Giant tortoises were considered an 2006, 2014). That a name change had taken place cannot essential food source for early mariners. They could be doubted, but that this name change was concordant with the actual extinction date of the dodo around 1662 (Cheke survive alive on board ship for months without food or 2006, 2014), or that it survived for another two or three water, thus providing fresh meat, and consumption of their decades (Moree 1998; Sleigh 2000; Fuller 2002; Roberts oil could prevent diseases such as scurvy (Cheke and and Solow 2003; Hume et al. 2004; Hume 2006; den Hume 2008). Tortoises were massacred by the settlers on Hengst 2009; Roberts 2013; Jackson 2014), is an issue still Mauritius during the Dutch period, despite the protests of waiting to be resolved. the governors, with large numbers being slaughtered just Pretorius described the Mauritius blue pigeon as to collect the grease, the rest of the body left to rot (Cheke having a warty face (contra Hume 2011; Hume and and Hume 2008). Commander Hugo reported that up to 50 Walters 2012), a character seen in all other species of were killed before a fat one was taken, and 400–500 were Alectroenas (Gibbs et al. 2001). All contemporary needed to make a barrel of grease, 30–40 to make a pint illustrations and accounts (e.g. see Tuijn 1969; Hume (Cheke and Bour 2014). Pretorius mentions that tortoises 2003; Hume 2011; Winters 2013) show or describe this 8 J.P. Hume and R. Winters

Figure 4. (Colour online) Dutch settlers catching Mauritius red rails with a stocking cap as described by Johannes Pretorius. Illustration by JPH.

species without warts or carunculations, so it was assumed that the Mauritian species lacked this ornamentation (Figure 5). Pretorius’s account suggests that the Mauritius Alectroenas may after all have resembled other Alectroe- nas species in having a warty face, despite this being a feature contemporary artists failed to illustrate. The Mauritius blue pigeon was also a difficult species to keep Figure 5. (Colour online) Illustrations of live or recently dead alive in captivity, as all of Pretorius’s attempts at hand- Mauritius blue pigeons Alectroenas nitidissima, all showing the rearing the young and keeping adults alive failed. This was bare facial skin without warts or carunculations. This is in direct most likely due to the almost exclusively frugivorous diet contrast with the description by Pretorius. Top, Joris Laerle 1601; common to all Alectroenas blue pigeons (Gibbs et al. lower left, Pierre Sonnerat 1782; lower right, Haasbroek c.1790 2001; Hume 2011). It was 130 years or so later in the (all taken from Hume 2003; 2011). 1790s that the only individual ever transported alive out of Mauritius reached the Netherlands, where the bird only parrots had become wary, kept to the high trees and had survived for three months before dying of dropsy (Tuijn learned to avoid humans, as Pretorius bemoans the fact 1969; Hume 2011; Winters 2013) (see Figure 5, lower that they were now so difficult to catch. Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015 right). The account of Pretorius, along with those from the Pretorius mentions the difficulty of catching different voyage of Admiral Jacob Cornelis van Neck in 1598 (Het species of parrot, including the echo parakeet, alive with Tvveede Boeck 1601) and the preacher Johann Christian nets, presumably for captive keeping. Parrots were Hoffman in 1673–1675 (Hoffman 1680), provides regularly captured for the bird trade during the seventeenth important information about the colouration and flying century, as a number of parrots were given as gifts or sold capabilities of the raven parrot. Van Neck’s account states: by the Dutch to Japanese dignitary in Dejima, along with the aforementioned dodo (Winters and Hume 2015). ... a bird which we called the Indian crow, more than Therefore, it seems most likely that parrots were twice as big as the parroquets, of two or three colours. maintained in captive conditions on Mauritius prior to Hoffman (1680) further records: exportation. Mauritian parrots of different species were ... also mentioned in many earlier accounts, most notably red ravens with hooked-beaks and with blue heads, that cannot fly well and are known by the Dutch as Indian about their tameness and the ease in which they could be ravens [our translation]. caught (Hume 2007; Cheke and Hume 2008 and references therein). Mariners could simply swing a baton The term ‘Indian raven or Indian crow’ was used to in the air to knock down passing birds or make a captured describe large parrots and macaws during the seventeenth individual squawk in order to attract an entire flock; century (see Hume 2007; Winters 2011), which was hundreds of birds could be taken in this way (Hume 2007; thought to be in reference to their raucous, crow-like call, Winters 2011). By the late 1660s, it appears that the or in part indicative of dark colouration (Hume 2007; Historical Biology 9

captivity were in vain (Figure 7); as far as is known, not one individual, alive or dead, ever left Mauritius. Only the larger Mauritian fruit bat is mentioned by Pretorius and after being considered endangered in the 1970s, has steadily increased in numbers; it is considered vulnerable today (IUCN 2014). A second smaller species, Pteropus subniger, was less fortunate. It had a peculiar ecology, roosting in hollows in trees or in caves, and was entirely nocturnal (Cheke and Dahl 1981; Cheke and Hume 2008), so it appears to have escaped the attention of Pretorius. It became extinct on Mauritius around 1870 (Cheke and Hume 2008). Figure 6. (Colour online) A new reconstruction of the raven Prior to Pretorius’s account, virtually nothing was known parrot Lophopsittacus mauritianus. Illustration by RW. about the ecology of the Mauritian sheldgoose, which disappeared c.1700 (Hume and Walters 2012). The Log of Cheke and Hume 2008). Hume considered that the ‘red’ the President in 1681 (in Barnwell 1950–54)notedthat: described by Hoffman was in reference to the beak colour, Up a little within the woods are several ponds and lakes of with the overall colouration being blackish-brown, and the water with great numbers of flamingoes and gray teal and head blue. However, the aforementioned accounts and that geese; but for the geese these are most in the woods or dry of Pretorius strongly suggest that this was not the case. ponds. A blackish-brown parrot could hardly be called ‘beauti- This account is interesting as, like in Pretorius’s report, fully coloured’. Based on Pretorius’s description and on the geese were noted as occurring predominantly on land. reinterpretation of Hoffman’s account, the raven parrot Furthermore, the tarsometatarsus of this species shows that was more likely to have been brightly coloured (contra the legs were more robust compared with the extant Egyptian Hume 2007; Cheke and Hume 2008), being predominantly goose Alopochen aegyptiacus (Hume and Walters 2012; red with a blue head. Furthermore, its probable Hume 2013, 2014), the most likely founding species. The relationship with SE Asian parrots also suggests that the robustness of the hind limb is indicative of a more terrestrial bill was similarly red (Hume 2007; Winters 2011). Like ecology (Hume 2013, 2014). According to Pretorius, the other Mascarene parrots, it may have also exhibited Mauritian sheldgoose also undertook intra-island migration, iridescence or gloss that changed with the angle of light being forced south during the dry season (Austral winter) to (Hume 2007; Hume and van Grouw 2014), which could be obtain water. Likemany geese, the Mauritian sheldgoosewas why it was described as having ‘two or three colours’ (Het a grazer and the diet comprised grasses, of which Mauritius Tvveede Boeck 1601)(Figure 6). once harboured seven endemics (two extinct, the others now Pretorius also states that the raven parrot was flightless, endangered), and a number of native and indigenous species whereas Hoffman noted that it could ‘not fly well’. The (Hubbard and Vaughan 1940). wing and pectoral bones were reduced in the raven parrot,

Downloaded by [J.P. Hume] at 00:56 28 April 2015 The dugong, which once occurred in the lagoon but not to the extent exhibited in the only known flightless surrounding Mauritius, disappeared due to over-hunting parrot, the Kakapo Strigops habroptilis (Hume 2007). around 1800, having been recorded as rare at least from the It seems likely that the raven parrot had become behaviourly flightless, an attribute that also occurred in another now-extinct island parrot, the Norfolk Island Kaka Nestor productus on Philip Island (Gurney 1854). Like the Kaka, this would eventually prove to be the raven parrot’s downfall. That a near flightless parrot survived for so long against plagues of tree-climbing, predatory black rats Rattus rattus and introduced crab-eating macaques Macaca fascicularis is remarkable, but this ‘mischievous’ and ‘bad-tempered’ parrot, which was also described as ‘fierce and indomitable’ (Herbert 1634), was probably aggressive enough to ward off introduced predators for decades. Ultimately, however, even the aggressiveness of this bird could not stave off extinction. The raven parrot had become scarce around 1669 and Hoffman’s account in 1673–1675 is the last record (Hume 2007). It is a great Figure 7. Johannes Pretorius with a captive raven parrot. pity that Pretorius’s attempts at keeping the raven parrot in Illustration by RW. 10 J.P. Hume and R. Winters

1760s (Cheke and Hume 2008). It is not known if the resident References population differed genetically from those occurring else- Arnold EN. 1979. Indian Ocean giant tortoises: their systematics and where, but dugong have never returned to Mauritius. island adaptations. Phil Trans Roy Soc Lond B. 286(1011):127–145. doi:10.1098/rstb.1979.0022. After the departure of Pretorius, all subsequent governors Barnwell PJ. 1948. Visits and despatches, 1598–1948. Port Louis: The and commanders on Mauritius suffered from a lack of Standard Printing Establishment. support from the motherland and the VOC dependencies at Barnwell PJ, editor. 1950–54. Extracts from ships’ logs visiting Mauritius. Rev Retrospective Ile Maurice. 1:195–8, 259–62, 324– The Cape and at Batavia (Sleigh 2000). The presence of rival 6; 2: 17–24, 79–84, 139–44, 201–8, 265–70, 317–20; 3: 17–22, French and English trading fleets forced the Dutch to 77–82, 139–46, 199–210, 267–274, 327–32,; 4: 1–6, 131–6, maintain a garrison on the island, but by 1710 Mauritius was 197–200; 5: 85–94. Barnwell PJ. 1992. Pretorius, Johannes (1642–1694). Dict Mauritian finally abandoned. This was in part due to rats, which by Biograph. 47:1437–1474. 1696 had multiplied to thousands of millions and swarmed Beck RB. 2014. The history of South Africa. 2nd ed. Santa Barbara, CA: everywhere from the coasts to the tops of the highest Greenwood. An imprint of ABC-CLIO, LLC. Bissoondoyal U, Servansing SBC, editors. 1989. Slavery in South mountains (Dutch commander Deodati in Liebbrandt 1896). Western Indian Ocean. Mauritius: Mahatma Gandhi Institute. The VOC ordered the razing of all buildings to the ground, Bour R. 1981. Histoire de la tortue terrestre de Bourbon. Bull Acad Ile and all settlers, bar a few deserters and slaves, were Re´union. 25:98–147. Cauche F. 1651. Relation du Voyage de F. Cauche Relations veritables et repatriated (Moree 1998). During the second period of Dutch curieuses de I’Isle de Madagascar. Paris: Augustin Courbe´. occupation, the geese, teal, coots, rails, raven parrots and, of Cheke AS. 2006. Establishing extinction dates: the curious case of the course, the dodo had all become extinct. Dodo Raphus cucullatus and the red hen Aphanapteryx bonasia. Ibis. 148(1):155–158. doi:10.1111/j.1474-919X.2006.00478.x. It is probable that Pretorius was requested by the council Cheke AS. 2014. Speculation, statistics, facts and the Dodo’s extinction of The Cape to report on the suitability of Mauritius as a date. Hist Biol. doi:10.1080/08912963.2014.904301. source of food supplies and other commodities, and if it was Cheke AS, Bour R. 2014. Unequal struggle: how humans displaced the dominance of tortoises in island ecosystems. In: Gerlach J, editor. still necessary to send complementary rice. Pretorius, as did Western Indian Ocean giant tortoises. Manchester: Siri Scientific many before and after him (Moree 1998), tried to Press; p. 32–120. enthusiastically ‘sell’ the island to the council, and in doing Cheke AS, Dahl JF. 1981. The status of bats on Western Indian Ocean islands, with special reference to Pteropus. Mammalia. 45(2): so not only described the forests, agriculture, introduced, 205–238. doi:10.1515/mamm.1981.45.2.205. native and captive species in a positive way, but also provided Cheke AS, Hume JP. 2008. Lost land of the Dodo: the ecological history important details about other things that he thought were of the Mascarene Islands. London: A&C Black (Poyser imprint). den Hengst J. 2009. The dodo and scientific fantasies: durable myths of a worth mentioning, especially if he found them extraordinary. tough bird. Arch Nat Hist. 36(1):136–145. doi:10.3366/ Pretorius fulfilled the request of the council at The Cape E0260954108000697. and reported that, apart from rice, Mauritius in 1666–1669 Floore PM, Jayasena RM. 2010. In want of everything? Archaeological perceptions of a Dutch outstation on Mauritius (1638–1710). Post- had an abundant and long-term food supply; unfortunately, Med Arch. 44(2):320–340. doi:10.1179/174581310X12810074246708. this was to change drastically by the end of the century: Fuller E. 2002. Dodo from extinction to icon. London: Harper Collins. Gibbs D, Barnes E, Cox J. 2001. Pigeons and doves: A guide to the I believe that if a ship was stranded here for a year there pigeons and doves of the world. Robertsbridge: Pica Press. would be no reason for concern about the matter of Griffiths OL, Florens VFB. 2006. A field guide to the non-marine sufficient food supply on the island. Therefore the rice molluscs of the Mascarene Islands (Maurtius, Rodrigues and could be missed. But not for ever. Re´union) and the northern dependencies of Mauritius. Mauritius:

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