RODRIGUEZ (officially RODRIGUES)  , an island in the Indian Ocean in 19° 41' S., 63° 23' E.; the most important dependency of the British colony of Mauritius, from which it is distant 344 nautical miles . It is a station on the " all-British " cable route between South Africa and Australia, telegraphic communication with Mauritius being established in 1902 . With a length of 13 M . E. and W., and a breadth of 3 to 6 m . N. and S., it has an area estimated at 422 sq. m . On all sides it is surrounded by a fringing reef of coral, studded with islets . This reef, only Too yds. wide at the eastern end of the island, extends westward 3 m., and both N. and S. forms a flat area partly dry at low water . Two passages through the reef are available for large vessels—these leading respectively to Port Mathurin on the N. coast and to Port South-East . The island was at one period believed to consist of granite over-laid with limestone and other modern formations, and its supposed formation caused it to be regarded as a remnant of the hypothetical continent of Lemuria . The investigations made by an expedition sent by the British government in 1874 showed, however, that the island is a mass of volcanic rock, mainly a doleritic lava, rich in olivine . The land consists largely of a series of hills . The main ridge, which runs parallel to the longest diameter, rises abruptly on the east, more gradually on the west, where there is a wide plain of coralline limestone, studded with caves, some stalactitic .

Of several peaks on the main ridge the highest is Mt .

Limon, 1300 ft. above the sea . The ridge is deeply cut by ravines, the upper parts of which show successive belts of lava separated by thin beds of cinders, agglomerate and coloured clays . In places the cliffs rise 300 ft. and exhibit twelve distinct lava flows . The climate is like that of Mauritius, but Rodriguez is more subject than Mauritius to hurricanes during the north-west monsoon (November to April) . Flora and Fauna.—When discovered, and down into the 17th century, Rodriguez was clothed with fine timber trees; but goats, cattle and bush-fires have combined to destroy the great bulk of the old vegetation, and the indigenous plants have in many cases been ousted by intrusive foreigners . Parts are, however, still well wooded, and elsewhere there is excellent pasturage . The' sweet potato, manioc, maize, millet, the sugar-cane, cotton, coffee and rice grow well . Tobacco is also cultivated . Wheat is seldom seen, mainly because of the parakeets and the Java sparrows . Beans (Phaseolus lunatus), lentils, gram (Cicer arietinum), dholl (Cajanus indicus) and ground-nuts are all grown to a certain extent in spite of ravages by rats . Mangoes, bananas, guavas, pine-apples, custard-apples, and especially oranges, citrons and limes flourish .

Of the timber trees the most

common are Elaeodendron orientate, much used in carpentry and for pirouges, and Latania Verschaffelti (Leguat's plantane) . At least two species of screw-pine (Pandanus heterocarpus, Balf. fit., and P. tenuifolius) occur freely throughout the island . The total number of known species, according to Professor I . B . Balfour, is 470, belonging to 85 families and 293 genera . The families represented by the greatest number of species are Gramineae, Leguminosae, Convolvulaceae, Malvaceae, Rubiaceae, Cyperaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Liliaceae, Compositae . Mathurina penduliflora (Turneraceae) is interesting, as its nearest congener is in Central America . Of 33 species of mosses 17 are peculiar . Variability of species and heterophylly are characteristic of the flora to quite an unusual degree . At present the only indigenous mammal is a species of fruit-eating bat (Pteropus rodericensis), and the introduced species are familiar creatures as deer, pig, rabbit, rat, mouse, &c.; but down to a recent period the island was the home of a very large land-tortoise (Testudo Vosmaeri or rodericensis), and its limestone caves have yielded a large number of skeletons of the dodo-like solitaire (Pezophaps salitarius), which still built its mound-like nest in the island in the close of the 17th century, but is now extinct (see Donis) . Deer, once plentiful, had become very scarce by the beginning of the 20th century, having been indiscriminately hunted by the inhabitants . Of indigenous birds 13 species have been registered .

The

guinea-fowl (introduced) has become exceedingly abundant, partly owing to a protective game-law; and a francolin (F. ponticerianus), popularly a " partridge," is also common .