Andranomena Special Reserve is a

wildlife reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

Menabe Menabe is a region in western Madagascar, with its capital at Morondava. It covers an area of , and its population was 700,577 in 2018. The population mostly belongs to the Sakalava ethnic group. The region is named after the 18th-century Sakala ...

Region, western

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 Africa ...

, near the city of

Morondava Morondava (, from mg, morona lava "long coast") is a city located in Menabe Region, of which it is the capital, in Madagascar. It is located in the delta of the Morandava River at . Its population as of the 2018 census, was 53,510. Population T ...

and the rural commune of Bemanonga.

Geography

This reserve is north-east of the city of

and from Baoababs' Alley in western Madagascar. Altitude ranges from sea level to . The annual rainfall is and can be visited throughout the year, including the wet season (December to March). There is no overnight accommodation within the park.

Flora and fauna

Habitats on the reserve consist mainly of dry scrubland, deciduous dry forest with the vegetation dominated by the

plant families Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclude ...

Bombacaceae Bombacaceae were long recognised as a family of flowering plants or Angiospermae. The family name was based on the type genus ''Bombax''. As is true for many botanical names, circumscription and status of the taxon has varied with taxonomic point ...

Burseraceae The Burseraceae are a moderate-sized family of 17-19 genera and about 540 species of flowering plants. The actual numbers differ according to the time period in which a given source is written describing this family. The Burseraceae are also know ...

and

Euphorbiaceae Euphorbiaceae, the spurge family, is a large family of flowering plants. In English, they are also commonly called euphorbias, which is also the name of a genus in the family. Most spurges, such as '' Euphorbia paralias'', are herbs, but some, ...

. Some of the species include ''

Adansonia rubrostipa ''Adansonia rubrostipa'', commonly known as fony baobab, is a deciduous tree in the Malvaceae family. Of eight species of baobab currently recognized, six are indigenous to Madagascar, including fony baobab. It is endemic to western Madagascar, ...

'', commonly known as fony baobab, the ebony tree ('' Diospyros platycalyx''), '' Euphorbia antso'' and ''

Hazomalania voyronii ''Hernandia voyronii'', commonly known as Hazomalany, is a species of plant in the Hernandiaceae family. It is endemic to Madagascar. Description ''Hernandia voyronii'' is a large tree which grows from 15 to 25 meters tall. Range and habitat '' ...

'' which has timber that contains

camphor Camphor () is a waxy, colorless solid with a strong aroma. It is classified as a terpenoid and a cyclic ketone. It is found in the wood of the camphor laurel ('' Cinnamomum camphora''), a large evergreen tree found in East Asia; and in the k ...

an insect repellent. There are also small seasonal lakes with locally endemic aquatic plants. Ten species of mammal have been recorded on the reserve including eight species of

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 Madaga ...

, 48 bird species, eleven species of reptile and one amphibian.

Coquerel's sifaka Coquerel's sifaka (''Propithecus coquereli'') is a diurnal, medium-sized lemur of the sifaka genus '' Propithecus''. It is native to northwest Madagascar. Coquerel's sifaka was once considered to be a subspecies of Verreaux's sifaka, but was eve ...

(''Propithecus coquereli'') was previously found at this site but has since been extirpated. Mammals found on the reserve include

Madame Berthe's mouse lemur Madame Berthe's mouse lemur (''Microcebus berthae'') or Berthe's mouse lemur is the smallest of the mouse lemurs and the smallest primate in the world; the average body length is and seasonal weight is around . ''Microcebus berthae'' is one of ...

(''Microcebus berthae''), which is evaluated as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and is the smallest species of mouse lemur; an endangered species,

Pale fork-marked lemur The pale fork-marked lemur (''Phaner pallescens''), or western fork-marked lemur, is a species of lemur known from western Madagascar; south of the Fiherenana River to the region of Soalala. It is listed on CITES CITES (shorter name for the ...

(''Phaner pallescens'');

red-tailed sportive lemur The red-tailed sportive lemur (''Lepilemur ruficaudatus''), or red-tailed weasel lemur, is native to Madagascar like all lemurs. It is a nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and slee ...

(''Lepilemur ruficaudatus'') also vulnerable; and the Fossa (''Cryptoprocta ferox''), a cat-like, carnivore and also a vulnerable species.

Threats

The reserve is threatened by poaching, illegal felling of trees and

slash-and-burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed veget ...

agriculture.

References

External links

Madagascar National Parcs – Andranomena Reserve
{{authority control Menabe Special reserves of Madagascar IUCN Category IV Madagascar succulent woodlands

Geography

Flora and fauna

Threats

See also

References

External links