Photograph of Indri

Indri by Simon Colenutt.

MADAGASCAR

Best Wildlife in Madagascar

Mammals
Over 100 lemur species including Indri, sifakas, Ring-tailed Lemur, woolly lemurs, and tiny mouse lemurs such as Madame Berthe's, the smallest lemur in the world at just 9 cm (3.6 inches) long, as well as tenrecs, Humpback Whale (mostly Jul-Sep), Madagascar Flying Fox, Narrow-striped Mongoose and Giant Jumping Rat. Also a chance of Fosa and Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin, and an outside chance of Aye-aye.

Birds
The endemics (to Madagascar and nearby islands) include a fish eagle, a jacana, five ground rollers, Cuckoo Roller, four asities, vangas such as Blue, Helmet, Nuthatch and Sickle-billed, a paradise flycatcher and three mesites, as well as a partridge, a heron, a crested ibis, a harrier, Sakalava Rail, two flufftails, a plover, a sandgrouse, a lovebird, two parrots, nine couas, four owls, a malachite and a pygmy kingfisher, three rock thrushes, two sunbirds, two fodies and two weavers, while more widespread species include Lesser and Greater Flamingos, Red-tailed Tropicbird, Black Heron, Hamerkop and Crab Plover, as well as African Pygmy Goose, African Darter, Madagascar Pond Heron, Eleonora's and Sooty Falcons (both mostly Nov-Apr), Black-winged Stilt, Madagascar Pratincole (mostly Sep-Apr), Madagascar Bee-eater and (Madagascar) Hoopoe. Also a chance of Greater Painted Snipe.

Reptiles, Amphibians and Fish
Chameleons (over 80 species, over half of the world total, including Pygmy Stump-tailed which is just 2 cm (0.8 in) long), leaf-tailed geckos and Whale Shark (mainly Jun-Sep).

Invertebrates
Giraffe-necked Weevil. Moths include the fabulous Moon Moth, some males of which may have wingspans measuring 20 cm (8 in) and tails as long as 15 cm (6 in).

Plants
Six plant families are endemic.

Best Sites for Wildlife in Madagascar

Best Times for Wildlife in Madagascar

October-November is the peak time for birds and as good a time as any for mammals apart from Humpback Whales which are usually present from July to September only. October is usually the peak time to look for Fosa because females in oestrous usually climb their favourite trees at this time, year after year, in order to attract males.

Recommended Books etc. for Madagascar

Bradt Travel Guide: Madagascar Wildlife by N Garbutt et al. Bradt, 2008 (Third Edition).

Mammals of Madagascar: A Complete Guide by N Garbutt. A & C Black, 2007.

Lemurs of Madagascar by R A Mittermeier et al. Conservation International, 2010 (Third Edition).

Birds of the Indian Ocean Islands by I Sinclair and O Langrand. New Holland, 2003.

Birds of Madagascar: A Photographic Guide by P Morris and F Hawkins. Helm, 1998.

A Field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Madagascar by F Glaw and M Vences. Frosch Verlag, 2007 (Third Edition).

Trip Reports for Madagascar

Many trip reports, some for Madagascar, are posted on the websites listed here. On some of these websites some reports are independent and some are posted by tour companies who organize tours to Madagascar. These tour companies and others also post their own reports on their websites, which are listed under 'Some Organized Tours to Madagascar' below.

Local Guides and Tours in Madagascar

The costs of organized tours partly reflect the quality of the tour leaders. Some leaders are certainly better than others and many companies claim their leaders are the best but even the best rely at least to some extent on the exceptional skills of the local guides they employ. If you are travelling independently, employing such local guides will greatly increase your chances of seeing the wildlife you wish to see.

Accommodation in Madagascar

Some Organized Tours to Madagascar

There are many tour companies who organize tours to see mammals, birds, other wildlife and other natural wonders. The cost of these tours vary considerably according to such variables as the airlines used, the number of days the tours last, the number of sites visited, the number of people in the group (an important consideration if you wish to see such wildlife as rainforest mammals and birds), the number of tour leaders, the standard of accommodation and transport, and the percentage profit the company hopes to make. Generally, where the number of days tours last and the number of sites visited are similar, the cheapest tours are those that use the cheapest airlines, accommodation and local transport, that have the largest groups with the least number of leaders, and that make the least amount of profit. The most expensive tours tend to be those which are exceptionally long, use the most expensive accommodation (ridiculously lavish in some cases, even for single nights) and which make the most profit. Some tour costs partly reflect the quality of the tour leaders. Some leaders are certainly better than others and many companies claim their leaders are the best but even the best rely at least to some extent on the exceptional skills of the local guides they employ.

While tour companies organize tours with set itineraries many also organize custom tours for individuals and private groups who instead of taking a tour with a set itinerary want to follow their own itinerary to suit their own personal tastes, whether it be mammals, birds, other wildlife, other natural wonders or even man-made attractions, or a mixture of them all. Many organized tours with set itineraries are also fast-paced and target as many species as possible, whether they are mammals, birds or other wildlife or everything, which usually leaves little time to enjoy the best sites and individual species, but on a custom tour those taking part can specify the pace and the sites and species they wish to concentrate on. Custom tours also suit people who like to travel with people they already know, rather than with a group of strangers, and people with partners with different interests. Individuals and small groups will almost certainly have to pay more than the price of an organized tour with a set itinerary but a large group of friends may be able to travel for less than the price quoted for a set tour.

Tour companies who run organized tours or can arrange custom tours to Madagascar include the following.