Andohahela National Park, in south-east

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Afric ...

, is remarkable for the extremes of habitats that are represented within it. The park covers of the Anosy mountain range, the southernmost spur of the Malagasy Highlands and contains the last humid rainforests in the southern part of Madagascar. The Park was inscribed in the

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

in 2007 as part of the Rainforests of the Atsinanana.

History

Andohahela has been a protected area since 1939 but did not become a national park until 1998.

Geography

Andohahela National Park is north-west of Tôlanaro and at the southern end of the Malagasy Highlands. The park is divided into three zones. The first, Malio, ranges from to the summit of Pic d' Andohahela at , and has dense

lowland Upland and lowland are conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level. In studies of the ecology of freshwater rivers, habitats are classified as upland or lowland. Definitions Upland and lowland are portions of ...

and montane rainforest with more than two hundred species of

tree ferns The tree ferns are arborescent (tree-like) ferns that grow with a trunk elevating the fronds above ground level, making them trees. Many extant tree ferns are members of the order Cyatheales, to which belong the families Cyatheaceae (scaly tree ...

, orchids, wild vanilla, lemurs and many birds. The second, Ihazofotsy-Mangatsiaka, contains dry spiny forest with rare birds and reptiles in altitudes ranging from to at the summit of Pic de Vohidagoro. The third zone, Tsimelahy, is mainly at an altitude of , and contains the unique Ranopiso transitional forest. The mountains form a natural barrier to the moist

trade wind The trade winds or easterlies are the permanent east-to-west prevailing winds that flow in the Earth's equatorial region. The trade winds blow mainly from the northeast in the Northern Hemisphere and from the southeast in the Southern Hemisp ...

s that blow from the east, causing on the eastern side a rainfall of per year that supports one of the few rainforests south of the

Tropic of Capricorn The Tropic of Capricorn (or the Southern Tropic) is the circle of latitude that contains the subsolar point at the December (or southern) solstice. It is thus the southernmost latitude where the Sun can be seen directly overhead. It also reac ...

. At the western edge of the park, the rainfall is just per year and the resulting vegetation is a dry spiny forest characteristic of southern Madagascar. Several circuits within each of the habitat types of the park can be accessed by road from the town of Tolagnaro. Detailed information on arranging trips is available from the tourism information office or from the Madagascar National Parks Association office in Tolagnaro.

Flora and fauna

The variety of habitats within Andohahela is mirrored in the richness of species that are found there, and the park is the richest place in Madagascar for

lemur Lemurs ( ) (from Latin ''lemures'' – ghosts or spirits) are wet-nosed primates of the superfamily Lemuroidea (), divided into 8 families and consisting of 15 genera and around 100 existing species. They are endemic to the island of Madag ...

s. Fifteen species have been recorded, including two of Madagascar's most emblematic species, the

ring-tailed lemur The ring-tailed lemur (''Lemur catta'') is a large strepsirrhine primate and the most recognized lemur due to its long, black and white ringed tail. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of five lemur families, and is the only member of the ''Lemur'' ...

and

Verreaux's sifaka Verreaux's sifaka (''Propithecus verreauxi''), or the white sifaka, is a medium-sized primate in one of the lemur families, the Indriidae. It lives in Madagascar and can be found in a variety of habitats from rainforest to dry deciduous forests ...

. Some rare species of geckos, turtles and snakes are among the 67 species of reptiles found in the park, 130 species of birds and fifty species of amphibians. The Triangle palm is found only here.

References

External links

Official website (in French)
{{authority control Anosy 1998 establishments in Madagascar National parks of Madagascar Protected areas established in 1998 World Heritage Sites in Madagascar Madagascar subhumid forests Madagascar lowland forests Madagascar spiny thickets Important Bird Areas of Madagascar

History

Geography

Flora and fauna

See also

References

External links