Chamarel

History

The Chamarel village is named after the Frenchman Charles Antoine de Chazal de Chamarel, who lived in the area around 1800. In the past the entire area of the village belonged to him. Mathew Flinders who was captured in Mauritius during the Napoleonic Wars was hosted by Chamarel in his estate. However, the local residents of the village call the area as the "Valley of Blacks".

Geography

Chamarel is a village located in the western hills on the west coast of Mauritius at an elevation of about between Savanne and the Black river districts where the cascades are formed on the River du Capano flowing through an "amphitheater of abrupt rocks". It is a wooded plateau. The village is known for its "hushed bucolic vibe and cool breezes". It is from the coast. Fauna noted in the forest surrounding the town is tortoise. The population in the village is one of the lowest in Mauritius, according to the census made by Statistics Mauritius in 2011; the population was at 783. Creoles form the major work force in this village of the Black River district. Creole Morisyen of the village have adopted to the concept of preserving the natural environment as it has provided them sustenance, while other creoles are in favour of ethnic tourism. Creole cuisine and the Rasrafarin music group and Group Natir are cultural traditions of the village which are popular.

Most-observed species

• Red-whiskered Bulbul

  Pycnonotus jocosus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  949
• Common Myna

  Acridotheres tristis (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  778
• Red Fody

  Foudia madagascariensis (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  709
• Mauritius Gray White-eye

  Zosterops mauritianus (Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  626
• Zebra Dove

  Geopelia striata (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  604
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  506
• Village Weaver

  Ploceus cucullatus (Statius Muller, 1776) · Aves
  495
• Mascarene Swiftlet

  Aerodramus francicus (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  482