Introduction
1. A tour of the Archipelago
2. Geography, origins, human use
3. Natural history of the islands and human settlement
4. Restoration, rats and the persistence of the coconut
5. Coral reefs of Chagos
6. Dark Ages and Enlightenment
7. The first ocean heatwave
8. Connections, and the major reef components
9. Creation of the BIOT Marine Reserve
10. Climate change research
11. The world’s conservation conundrum in one archipelago
12 What of the future?
References
Biography
Charles Sheppard OBE was an Emeritus Professor whose work focused on coral reefs, and impacts of marine exploitation and climate change. He researched in most Indian Ocean and Caribbean countries, wrote about 250 research articles and over a dozen books, and received several awards for conservation.
Anne Sheppard has been Charles' partner and scientific colleague throughout, a biologist, taxonomist and photographer. They first visited the Chagos Archipelago in the 1970s and then, with others, built up a series of research expeditions as the richness, condition and value of Chagos became apparent. This culminated in its declaration as the world's largest no-take ocean reserve.
Photo Jon Schlayer, with permission.
“Professor Emeritus Charles Sheppard OBE’s latest (and final) book on the coral reefs and biogeography of the Chagos Islands is a highly engaging and accessible narrative, but ultimately a plea to act on climate change and human impacts on coral within a decade—or there won’t be much left. Charles vividly paints the Chagos archipelago as a unique and broadly instructive microcosm of the world’s conservation and governance conundrums, and an ecological reference point. There are few branches of science whose practitioners hope that the outcomes of their lifetime’s research might be wrong or become irrelevant, but Charles reminds us, ‘that is the case both for scientists researching climate change and its effects on natural systems, not only coral reefs’. As for Chagos and its reefs? We must retain hope, he said, or we are lost. ‘After all, we know we will be dead one day but would still see a doctor tomorrow if needed. Why?’. Sadly, the first print of this book arrived at his door just days after his sudden death in 2024 not long after ‘retirement’. It is a fitting final publication.”
Matthew Bunce FMBA, in The Marine Biologist, Issue 32, Oct 2024
