party to: Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate
Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the
Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs; home of the dodo, a large flightless bird related to pigeons, driven to extinction by the end of the 17th century through a combination of hunting and the introduction of predatory species
People ::Mauritius
Population:
1,284,264 (July 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 153
Age structure:
0-14 years: 22.5% (male 147,136/female 142,121)
15-64 years: 70.4% (male 449,176/female 455,057)