A Fragile Eden

Full Title: A Fragile Eden: Portraits of the Endemic Flowering Plants of the Granitic Seychelles
Second Hand
Hardcover
Author: Wise, R.
Published by: Princeton University Press

Book Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket: Very Good.
Presentation copy. Spine fade to DJ, slight water damage to board cloth, otherwise very crisp, clean and bright. Attractive bookplate of notable botanist and author Mary Briggs to FEP; also a letter from the author to Mary.
This text transports readers to a band of ancient and remote islands located 1000 miles off the coast of Africa. These islands, the Seychelles, have 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.
ISBN: 0691048177