The Mikea Forest (or Forêt des Mikea) is a forested region of southwestern
Madagascar
Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...
, between
Manombo and
Morombe.
More specifically, it stretches from
Route Nationale 9 to the west coast and from
Mangoky south to the
Manombo River. It lies at the transition between
dry deciduous forest, which is more common further north in Madagascar, and
spiny forest, which is dominant in southwestern Madagascar.
[ Its underlying geology is unconsolidated sand,][ This soil composition has resulted in a collection of plant and animal species, even distinct from adjacent vegetation on limestone. Small terrestrial mammals found here include the rodents '' Macrotarsomys bastardi'', '' Macrotarsomys petteri'', and the introduced ]black rat
The black rat (''Rattus rattus''), also known as the roof rat, ship rat, or house rat, is a common long-tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus ''Rattus'', in the subfamily Murinae. It likely originated in the Indian subcontinent, but is n ...
(''Rattus rattus''); the tenrecs '' Tenrec ecaudatus'', '' Setifer setosus'', '' Echinops telfairi'', '' Geogale aurita'', and '' Microgale jenkinsae''; and the shrew '' Suncus madagascariensis''. ''Macrotarsomys petteri'' and ''Microgale jenkinsae'' are unique to the forest and were only discovered in the 2000s.[ The popular ]ring-tailed lemur
The ring-tailed lemur (''Lemur catta'') is a medium- to larger-sized strepsirrhine (wet-nosed) primate and the most internationally recognized lemur species, owing to its long, black-and-white, ringed tail. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of fiv ...
(''Lemur catta'') also occurs in Mikea Forest, though it seems to always have been present in very low densities. Since the habitat has started to disappear, the remaining populations appear to have become isolated.threatened species
A threatened species is any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which is vulnerable to extinction in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensatio ...
of bird in Madagascar, only two ('' Monias benschi'' and '' Uratelornis chimaera'') were not found in protected areas, but both were fairly common within the unprotected forests of Mikea. ''Monias benschi'' had an estimated population of 115,000, while the ''Uratelornis chimaera'' population was estimated at fewer than 15,000.[
Between the 1960s and the 2000s, ]forest cover
Forest cover is the amount of trees that covers a particular area of land. It may be measured as relative (in percent) or absolute (in square kilometres/ square miles). Nearly a third of the world's land surface is covered with forest, with clos ...
had declined by 16% and deforestation
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...
was accelerating, having doubled in the last five years of that time period. The factors behind the deforestation at that time were slash and burn
Slash-and-burn agriculture is a form of shifting cultivation 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. T ...
agriculture for maize
Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...
cultivation in the northern regions of the forest and charcoal
Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, ca ...
production in the southern regions. As of 2000, recommendations had been made to establish a large protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...
, to provide aid to improve agriculture, and to establish a network of community-based conservation areas.[ In 2001, Madagascar National Parks, known then as ANGAP, was considering a new national park in the area.]national park
A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...
encompassing in two parcels had been submitted to the Supreme Council for Nature Protection (a state entity that deals with natural resource management) and was in the process of being finalized.
See also
* Anjanamba cave
References
Literature cited
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{{coord, -22.6, 43.4, dim:100km_region:MG, display=title
Geography of Madagascar
Forests of Madagascar
Forests of Atsimo-Andrefana