Madagascar – a birder’s paradise

If you saw the DreamWorks film Madagascar, you could be forgiven for getting very confused about what sort of wildlife inhabits this vast, Indian Ocean island off the south-eastern coast of Africa. There are no penguins, and no escapees from Central Park Zoo. What you will find, however, is an extraordinary hotpot of biodiversity: 90% of the flora and fauna on Madagascar is found nowhere else on earth. The bird watching in particular is second to none.

Madagascar is the world’s fourth largest island, and situated just off Africa’s east coast. Despite its proximity to Africa, it was in fact historically connected to the Indian landmass, not to Africa, and this explains some of its geological make-up, as well as the types of wildlife that lives there. There are two seasons – a hot, rainy season around January to March, and a warm, dry season from April to December – and the landscape varies from prominent massifs and plateaus, to grasslands…