Uncertainty around Madagascar mine in wake of cyclone
TOAMASINA, Madagascar — Last January, when Tropical Cyclone Ava made landfall on Madagascar, wreaking havoc for 24 hours, people here knew they had more than usual to worry about. Ava…
For Madagascar’s park managers, the science literature is out of reach
The people responsible for managing Madagascar’s protected areas tend to rely more on experience and “advice from others” than on scientific research to make on-the-ground decisions, a new study has…
Madagascar: Yet another anti-trafficking activist convicted
An activist working to stem corruption and wildlife trafficking in northeastern Madagascar was convicted and immediately released earlier this month — a tactic that has become common in the island nation…
One tortoise at a time: Q&A with zoo veterinarian Justin Rosenberg
An international effort is underway in Madagascar to save thousands of threatened tortoises that were discovered in an abandoned house in the city of Toliara in April. The first descriptions…
Primate-rich countries are becoming less hospitable places for monkeys, apes and lemurs
Our primate cousins have managed to colonize a broad swath of the planet, taking up residence in 90 countries. Still, the majority of monkey, ape, lemur, tarsier and lorisid species…
Madagascar court upholds sentence for environmental activist
A farmer turned environmental activist who was convicted on criminal charges after questioning a mining company about its permits has had his appeal denied by a court in Madagascar. The…
Lessons for developing countries in expansion of Madagascar’s protected area network
Developing countries worldwide are expanding their protected area networks, and a recent paper that examines how Madagascar greatly expanded its own protected area system over the past decade and a…
‘Rainbow’ chameleon among three new species described from Madagascar
Researchers surveying Madagascar’s forests have discovered three new species of chameleons, including one that flashes rainbow colors and one that’s currently known only from a tiny patch of rainforest. A…
Sifaka lemurs listed as “critically endangered” amid mysterious die-off
Lemurs in Madagascar have been under pressure from deforestation, poaching, drought and other challenges for years. Now, in the much-visited Berenty Reserve near the island’s southern tip, one species faces…
‘Monumental’ bust in Madagascar triggers effort to save thousands of endangered tortoises
Authorities in Madagascar seized almost 10,000 critically endangered tortoises earlier this month from a house suspected to be a waypoint for funneling them into Asia’s pet trade. The Turtle Survival…
More than 40 percent of Madagascar’s freshwater life sliding toward extinction, IUCN finds
Madagascar is known as an ark for biodiversity that's found nowhere else on the planet. Unfortunately, it's also known for the bevy of threats that those distinctive species that live…
Madagascar: Conservation official arrested for killing 11 endangered lemurs
ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar — Two weeks ago, the bodies of 11 critically endangered lemurs were discovered in Iaroka forest inside the Zahamena Ankeniheny Corridor protected area in eastern Madagascar. The lemurs…
Will Madagascar’s industrial shrimp trawlers make way for local fishers?
ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar — For most people on the west coast of Madagascar, fishing is life. When the sun creeps over the horizon each morning, the men are already out in…
DJ and ornithologists create wildlife music game
Wildlife DJ Ben Mirin has teamed up with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the Cornell Hip Hop Collection on a new online game that is sure to entrance nature…
Study delves into overlooked community perceptions of conservation impact
Most conservation projects today must answer a key question: How does the project affect the local people? But high-quality studies that measure the impacts of conservation projects on people’s well-being remain…
Scientists discover 18 new spider-hunting spiders from Madagascar
With their long “necks” and sharp, fang-like mouthparts, assassin spiders hunt a strange prey – other spiders. Now, thanks to a study published recently in ZooKeys, there are 18 more…
Tree-dwelling animals can ‘climb’ away from climate change, study finds
Animals that live in trees in the tropics are likely to be better at crossing mountains and dealing with climate change compared to ground-dwelling animals, a new study published in…
There’s a new member of the lemur family
Scientists have found a new species of dwarf lemur in southeastern Madagascar. Grove’s Dwarf lemur (Cheirogaleus grovesi) was discovered in two national parks, Ranomafana and Andringitra, both of which are…
Do protected areas work in the tropics?
In 1986, Patricia Wright, then a budding primatologist, spent weeks combing the rainforests of eastern Madagascar in search of the greater bamboo lemur (Prolemur simus), a five-pound bamboo-eating primate that…
CITES rejects Madagascar’s bid to sell rosewood and ebony stockpiles
In August, the government of Madagascar drafted a business plan to sell its stockpiles of rosewood and ebony — hundreds of thousands of logs. The plan required the approval of…
Abandoned by their sponsors, Madagascar’s orphaned parks struggle on
PORT BERGÉ, Madagascar — Karimo and Célice could scarcely believe their luck. Four years of bumper corn harvests have allowed the husband and wife, who each go by a single…
Carbon dreams: Can REDD+ save a Yosemite-size forest in Madagascar?
MAROANTSETRA, Madagascar — Two years ago, a group of foreigners visited Marovovonana, the riverside village where Amélin Toto Arison runs a general store, to make a presentation about carbon. Arison…
Storytelling empowers indigenous people to conserve their environments
The moon rides high over the Bolivian Amazon as the Tsimané people crowd around the fire to tell stories. A conservation scientist sits among them, leans in to catch every…
Another blow to troubled Madagascar rare earth mine
A rare earth mining project in Madagascar that has been in turmoil for the last two years took another blow in September, when its concession, previously valued at over $1…
To feed a growing population, farms chew away at Madagascar’s forests
SAVA REGION, Madagascar – Squatting barefoot in a field of mud on the outskirts of Marojejy National Park, easing rice seedlings from the earth, Paul Tiozen shrugged out one of…
Lemur on the menu: most-endangered primates still served in Madagascar
Editor's note: This story contains a graphic image toward the bottom. SAVA REGION, Madagascar — Two of Madagascar’s senior wildlife officials have separately confirmed that lemur meat is served in…
Madagascar petitions CITES to sell millions in stolen rosewood
SAVA REGION, Madagascar — Madagascar is applying to sell millions of dollars’ worth of illegally logged timber, prompting fears of a bonanza for traffickers. The country has stockpiled tens of…
Logjam: Inside Madagascar’s illegal-rosewood stockpiles
ANTALAHA, Madagascar — The piles of rosewood logs outside Chantal Rasoanirina’s office filled more than half the courtyard to head height. Each log, wet and weathered, was marked with a…
Does community-based forest management work in the tropics?
Piles of wood lie in an open area behind the main office of the Arabari Reserve Forest in West Bengal, India. Long logs and cut planks of sal trees (Shorea…
Madagascar environmental activist convicted, sentenced — and paroled
ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar — Last week, an environmental activist in southeast Madagascar was convicted, sentenced to two years in prison — and immediately released on parole. This follows a recent pattern…
