It is a bit hidden on the edge of a street in the district of Andohalo. But those who visit the royal palace of the capital of Madagascar should not simply walk past this piece of history. Directly at the Lalana Ramboatiana between the Rova of Antananarivo and the palace of the Prime Minister runs approximately 40 meters long terracotta …

In Madagascar, no one needs to be afraid of snakes. One of the most common snakes in the west and south of the island is the Common Big-Eyed Snake (Mimophis mahfalensis). But it is also one of the most harmless snakes that only bite in the worst of times. If you simply watch it, you will discover exciting behaviours. The …

It actually isn’t really big, but at least clearly the biggest in its family: The big Cuvier’s Madagascar Swift (Oplurus cuvieri) measures a maximum of 38 cm from the nose to the tip of the tail. Alone the scaly tail constitutes good 20 cm of it. Cuvier’s Madagascar Swift belongs to the family of the Madagascar iguana, that there is …

Not half a meter tall, having with two kilos the weight of a small cat and pitch-black colored: These are black lemurs (Eulemur macaco). However, only the males are black. The females have little to do with the name. Their coat is reddish-brown, only their face and hands are black, the first one framed by a white coat wreath. Black …

With its long, colorful nose, this chameleon is probably one of the most interesting, albeit smaller, species among the long-tongued reptiles: Calumma gallus. Some call it the Pinocchio or Cyrano chameleon because of its characteristic long nose. But actually, there is no “real” English name. The life of a Calumma gallus begins, as with so many reptiles, in the egg. …

It’s not green, the Madagascar bright-eyed or tree frog! Absolutely right. The Madagascar bright-eyed frog, Boophis madagascariensis, captivates less with colourful colours than with its impressive body size. It is a good six to eight centimetres long, individual specimens even ten centimetres from the tip of the nose to the coccyx. Among Madagascar’s frogs, it is thus one of the …