The fauna of Reunion is not very rich in variety of species. The mammals are a brown maki (Lemur mon goz, Linn.) from Madagascar, several bats, a wild cat, the tang or tamec (Centetes setosus, Denn.), rats, etc. Among the more familiar birds are the "oiseau de la vierge" (Muscipeta borbonica), the tectec (Pratincola sybilla), Certhia borbonica, the cardinal (Foudia madagascariensis), various swallows, ducks, etc. The visitants from Madagascar, Mauritius and even India are very numerous. Lizards and frogs of more than one species are com mon, but there is only one snake (Lycodon aulicum) known in the island. Various species of Gobius, a native species of mullet, Nestis cyprinoides, Osplironamus olfax and Doules rupestris are among the freshwater fishes.
The heat, humidity and fertility of the volcanic soil have given Reunion an abundant and varied vegetation. In the forest region of the island there is a belt, 4,500-5,000 ft. above the sea, char acterized by the prevalence of dwarf bamboo (Bambusa alpina), and above that is a similar belt of Acacia heterophylla. Besides this last the best timber-trees are Casuarina laterifolia, Foetida mauritiana, Imbricaria petiolaris, Elaeodendron orientale, Cabo phyllum spurium (red tacamahac), Terminalia borbonica, Parkia speciosa. A species of coffee plant is indigenous. Fruits grown are: the banana, the coco-nut, bread-fruit and jack-fruit, etc. Forests originally covered nearly the whole island; the majority of the land has been cleared, but the administration has in part replanted the higher districts with eucalyptus and caoutchouc trees.
Reunion, strictly speaking, has no indigenous population. The inhabitants include creoles, mulattoes, negroes, Indians and other Asiatics. The creole population is descended from the first French settlers, chiefly Normans and Bretons, who married Malagasy women. Three quarters of the inhabitants are of European origin. Three kinds of creoles are recognized—those of the towns and coasts, those of the mountains, and the petits creoles, originally a class of small farmers living in the uplands, now reduced to a condition of poverty and dependence on the planters. The creoles blancs de villes, the typical inhabitants of the island, are in general of a somewhat weak physique, quick witted and of charming manners, brave and very proud of their island, but not of strong character. The creole patois is French mixed with a considerable number of Malagasy and Indian words, and containing many local idioms. The population, about 35,00o towards the close of the i8th century, numbered 197,933 in 1931, and of these 194,272 were of French extraction.
St. Denis, pop. (1931) 26,807, the capital of the island, lies on the N. coast. It is built in the form of an amphitheatre, and has several fine public buildings and centrally situated botanic gardens. The only anchorage for ves
sels is an open roadstead. St. Pierre (pop. 22,048), the chief town on the leeward side of the island, has a small artificial harbour. Between St. Pierre and St. Denis, and both on the leeward shore, are the towns of St. Louis (pop. 17,237) and St. Paul (pop. 22,679). A few miles N. of St. Paul on the S. side of Cape Pointe des Galets is the port of the same name, the only considerable harbour in the island. It was completed in 1886, it covers 4o acres, is well protected, and has 28 ft. of water. A railway serving the port goes round the coast from St. Pierre, by St. Paul, St. Denis, to St. Benoit (a town on the E. side of the island, pop. in 1926, 12,523), a distance of 831 m. Telegraphic communication with all parts of the world was established in 1906.
The greater part of the land under cultivation on the island is occupied by sugar-cane plantations, the remainder being under either maize, manioc, potatoes, haricots, or coffee, vanilla and cocoa. The sugar-cane, introduced in 1711 by Pierre Parat, is now the staple crop. In the i8th century the first place belonged to coffee (introduced from Arabia in 1715) and to the clove tree, brought from the Dutch Indies by Poivre at the risk of his life. Both are now cultivated on a very limited scale. Vanilla, introduced in 1818, was not extensively cultivated till about 1850. Bourbon vanilla, as it is called, is of high char acter, and next to sugar is the most important article of cultiva tion in the island. There are small plantations of cocoa and cin chona; cotton-growing was tried, but proved unsuccessful.
The sugar industry has suffered greatly from the competition with beet sugar and the effects of bounties, also from the scarcity of labour, from the ravages of the phylloxera (which made its appearance in 1878) and from extravagant methods of manufac ture. It was not until 1906 that steps were taken for the creation of central sugar mills and refineries, in consequence of the com pulsory shutting down of many small mills. Rum is largely dis tilled and forms an important article of export. There are also manufactories for the making of geranium essence, St. Pierre being the centre of this industry. Other articles exported are aloe fibre and vacoa casks. The mineral wealth of the island has not been exploited, except for the mineral springs which yield waters highly esteemed. Cattle are imported from Madagascar; rice from Saigon and India; petroleum, for factories, from America and Russia; almost everything else comes from France, to which country go most of the exports. Over 75% of the shipping is under the French flag. Fishing is an important occupation.