Madagascar

1. geographical significance

1.1. with its extraordinary, yet highly threatened biodiversity, the Indian Ocean island of Madagascar is a global conservation priority

1.2. habitats ranging from tropical rainforests to dry forests, spiny deserts, reefs, islands, sea grass beds, mangrove forests, and estuaries

1.3. turn leads to the depletion of Madagascar’s biodiversity capital; only a small fraction of the original forest remains, and many charismatic species have become extinct

1.4. population is one of the poorest in the world, had limited land tenure rights, little access to information and minimal support for alternative livelihoods resulting in devasting standard of living and natural environment

1.5. Madagascar separated from mainland Africa between 100 and 200 million years ago

2. history

2.1. Madagascar is a natural landfall for seafarers sailing east from Africa or west from Indonesia

2.2. as much Indonesian as African

2.3. first known to Europeans after being sighted in 1500 by a Portuguese ship on the new route to India, but it is not until a century later that much outside attention is paid to the place

2.4. Eurpoeans there were thought to be pirates

2.5. had two devasting cyclones happen in early 200

3. exotic animals

3.1. Lemurs

3.1.1. evolved 50 to 60 million years ago

3.1.2. 93 species

3.1.3. found across the island

3.1.4. examples are bamboo, black, dwarf, and mouse lemurs

3.2. aye-aye

3.2.1. capable to see insect movement at a 12 foot depth

3.2.2. endangered by habitat destruction and widespread persecution

3.2.3. to native malagasy it is thought as the bringer of bad luck

3.2.4. has ears of bat and teeth of a rat

3.3. fossa

3.3.1. notcural carnivore closely related to the mongoose

3.3.2. looks like a cros ebtween a dog and a puma

3.3.3. very unique, can manuever well both in trees and on land

3.3.4. hunts and feeds off of virtually any animal

3.3.5. largest predator