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Schlagwort-Archiv: Spiny forest

Little Pearls of the South: Spider Tortoises

Tortoises are popular, both in Madagascar and all over the world. And yet these reptiles on the red island are massively threatened. One of them is the Spider Tortoise (Pyxis arachnoides), named after the beautiful, web-like pattern of its dorsal shell. The older Spider Tortoises get, however, the more the pretty pattern disappears. Really old animals – it is assumed …

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The climate in Madagascar

Reisfelder im Hochland

Madagascar is an island with many faces and also with the climate this saying is more than true. Madagascar’s climate is dominated by the Indian Ocean, which sends trade winds throughout the year. These meet in Madagascar with different cave locations, protective mountain ranges, and unprotected offshore islands, which create very different climates. The dry and rainy season The climatic …

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The Baobab Forest of Andavadoaka

Baobabs

The fishing village of Andavadoaka in the region of Atsimo-Andrefana is situated on a picturesque beach on the southwest coast of Madagascar. It is located about 170 km north of the city of Toliara (French: Tuléar). A large coral reef protects the bay of the same name. Not only divers find a true paradise here. White sand and turquoise blue …

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The Ground Gecko of the South: Paroedura picta

The hot south is the home of a small and very pretty gecko, the Madagascar Ground Gecko (Paroedura picta). It inhabits spiny and dry forests around Toliara (French: Tuléar) down to the bay of St. Augustin. The somewhat wetter valley along the river Onilahy is also populated. Even further south the species occurs as far as Berenty and Amboasary Sud …

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Tavy – Clearing an island

Brandrodung nahe Andasibe

Black smoke clouds the national route 2, the off-roader brakes and continues at snail’s pace. The driver hurries to close his window. “What’s that?”, asks a traveler in the back seats. “The forest is on fire,” mumbles the driver. “We call it tavy.” This or something similar happens every day in Madagascar. But why is the rainforest burning next to …

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The water tank of the South

Cyphostemma montagnacii

Madagascar’s south put forth many quirky, mostly water saving plants. An especially strange and unique plant is Cyphostemma montagnacii. The shape of this plant seems to be not of this world: A small, gnarly stem merges into long vines. Indeed this strange plant belongs to the grapevine family. Its branches need a tree which they can climb up and which …

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Arboretum Antsokay

Antsokay

Antsokay: The name means as much as “lime” and points to the typical loam and lime containing soil of the area. Around Arboretum, people make bricks from this kind of soil. Location: The Arboretum Antsokay is located in southwestern Madagascar in the region of Atsimo-Andrefana. It is only 12 kilometers away from one of the largest cities of the south, …

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Reniala reserve

Reniala: The name means as much as “mother of the forest”, which is the nickname of the baobabs endemic to this area. Location: Deep down at the southwestern coast of Madagascar, about 30 km away from the big city Toliara (Tuléar), there is the small village Ifaty-Mangily directly at the sea. You can reach it since 2016 via a well-paved …

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Baobab Avenue

The legendary Baobab Avenue is located on the road (or let’s better say the dusty slope) between Morondava and Belo sur Tsiribinha in west Madagascar. It is in the province of Menabe. Everywhere along the road between those two cities, you can find the impressive Baobab trees, only a small part of 250 meters length is known as Baobab Avenue …

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No life without the Ocotillo: Verreaux’ Sifakas

The Verreaux’ Sifakas (Propithecus verreauxi) lives in the south of Madagascar and belongs to the few lemurs that successfully colonize the hot and hostile spiny forests. It is a very adaptable species that can survive even in very small forest areas. It can even be found in some lowland rainforests in the southeast of the eighth continent. In the northwest, the …

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