This guide introduces the colourful and commonly found plants of Mauritius and the Indian Ocean Islands as well as for other tropical countries. It provides an invaluable companion to the plant amateur. Several species are covered, indicating their botanical names, common names, description, origin, and habitat, the etymology of their names, and general information. Relevant icons are used throughout the text to best illustrate their uses.
The introductory chapters give a brief account of the vegetation of Mauritius and the Indian Ocean islands and introduce the families of plants. 431 colour photographs have been used to illustrate 400 plants from 96 families of some of the most striking plants from the tropics.
Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, PhD is presently the Managing Director of the Centre for Phytotherapy Research (CEPHYR). She has authored several books on Medicinal Plants and on the flora of Mauritius and Africa. In 2010, she also co-authored the African Herbal Pharmacopoeia.
Elected Fellow to the African, lslamic Academies of Science and the Linnean Society of London, she has received several international scientific prizes namely the l'Oreal-Unesco Prize for Women in Science (2007), the Special “Woman Professionals in Science” Prize of the CTA/NEPAD/RU FORUM/AG RA/ATPS/FARA (2009); the African Union ‘Woman in Science‘ Prize (2009). In 2013, she received the Honorary Doctorate from the Universite Pierre Marie Curie (Sorbonne Universites).