Word: analamazaotra
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Dates: during 2008-2008
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...walking through the Réserve Spéciale d'Analamazaotra, a few hours' drive west of Madagascar's capital of Antananarivo. The reserve is one of the few remaining patches of untouched forest on Madagascar, where more than 90% of the native tree cover has already been lost; chameleons, rare frogs and lemurs make their home here. It's late afternoon, and patches of early spring sunlight (this is the Southern Hemisphere) peek through the Ravenea louvelii, the native palm. Lemurs are sleeping this time of day, though, and a sleeping lemur is hard to spot. But then...
...makes sense, then, that sustaining the forests would be the first step in saving the wildlife. For decades in Madagascar, as in much of the world, that has meant the creation of protected parklands like the Réserve Spéciale d'Analamazaotra, where one goes hunting (with cameras) for lemurs. But now scientists recognize that deforestation in tropical countries like Madagascar could be responsible for up to a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, giving another new incentive to save and expand forests...
...walk through Analamazaotra reminds you of how much there is to be gained when projects like this work - or lost, if they fail. After the sun sets, Mittermeier and Razafindrasolo lead a nocturnal tour along the outskirts of the reserve. The forest throbs with invisible life. What we can't see, we can hear: tree frogs mating, insects whirring, a rustling through the branches. Our flashlights pierce the canopy, but just barely, before a thicket of leaves absorbs the beam. After hundreds of years of human exploration on this island, there are still countless species that have...
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