The Rodrigues day gecko was common on Rodrigues before people arrived. These foot long geckos preferred to live in trees, especially the Latin palms. Their diet was reported to have consisted of insects and invertebrates, but its favorite food was soft fruit and nectar. This made the Rodrigues day gecko and its giant gecko counterpart extremely important to the distribution of pollen throughout the island. The Rodrigues day geckos pollinated plants during the day and the Phelsuma gigas pollinated plants at night which led to a healthy ecosystem on the island. The Rodrigues day gacko’s extinction began with the arrival of people and the invasive species brought with them. It was a slow process. Rodrigues wasn’t colonized until over 700 years after it was known to exist in the Indian Ocean. In the 900’s, the Mascarene Islands were first described on Arabic maps. They called Rodrigues,“Desert Island” or Diva Harab (ديفا هاراب). Rodrigues was named after Portuguese explorer Diogo Rodrigues in 1528. Rodrigues was occupied by many countries while exploring routes to the Spice Islands. In 1691, the Huguenot François Leguat tried to set up a farming colony, which failed due to its dry climate. The island was used to replenish supplies of water and food like giant tortoises and birds. In 1735, the French established the first permanent settlement on Rodrigues. Today, Rodrigues is part of the Republic of Mauritius. The downfall of Rodrigues day gecko began with the arrival of people to the island. Once a colony was established, people began cutting down trees and burning sections of the forest. Francois Leguat’s account noted that many lizards would fall from the trees when they were hit to knock down coconuts. The birds like the bitterns would come and gobble them up. Since the Rodrigues day gecko spent most of its time in trees, its range became limited. Like so many animals on other islands, the final blow came with the arrival of rats and cats to the island. These new predators finished off the remaining day geckos. The last Rodrigues day gecko was seen in 1917. Although Jurassic Park is fiction, scientists are working on several de-extinction projects. In fact, in 2003 scientists did bring back the extinct Pyrenean ibex, a type of wild goat, for 7 minutes before it died, showing de-extinction is possible. The Rodrigues day gecko might be a candidate, since there are 6 preserved specimens in museums in London and Paris. Scientists could potentially use that soft tissue to de-extinct the Rodrigues day gecko. If the Rodrigues day gecko was brought to life, could it ever be reintroduced to its native homeland in Rodrigues and nearby islets? This very question is wrapped up well by the observations by Ben J. Novak who works with Revive & Restore, a scientific group looking into de-extinction projects like the dodo and Mauritius giant tortoises. Mr. Novak said, “My time in Mauritius was a true crash course in the nation’s proud conservation movement. Mauritius, while having lost the majority of its endemic species, is home to some of the most incredible recovery projects of endangered species anywhere in the world. For example, after having declined to only 12 individuals in 1968, the population of Rodrigues Fody, a small, red-faced songbird, has recovered to over 8,000. Mauritius has pioneered innovative hybrid programs of in situ and ex situ conservation recovery, exemplified by the Mauritius Kestrel recovery; the population has grown from a single female and 3 males in 1974 to over 400 individuals today. And it is one of the first countries to replace an extinct species, the endemic Mauritius Giant Tortoise, with a living ecological surrogate – the Aldabra Giant Tortoise. In essence, Mauritius has already done de-extinction the non-genetic way.” It seems that if the Roridgues day gecko was ever brought back, Rodrigues and other Mascarene islands have already done much to prepare for its return.