The Masoala Peninsula as become one of Madagascar's top conservation priorities for its extensive rainforest (by Madagascar standards) and high biodiversity of plant and animal life. In the late 1990s, the 410,000ha Masoala National Park was created. Today the Masoala can only be reached by boat.
Despite the high number of animal species, wildlife in the rainforest can be exceedingly difficult to spot. Nevertheless you may find the red-ruffed lemur, white-fronted brown lemur, aye-aye, greater hedgehog tenrec, fossa, fanaloka, falanouc, and a number of bird species. Look carefully for chameleons and relatively abundant Uroplatus geckos. There are also lots of insects.
Watch where you swim -- the Gulf of Antongil is notorious for sharks. During my first visit we saw several as we made our way across stormy seas.
Province: Antsiranana (Diégo-Suarez)
Area: 230,000
Protected area status: National park
Year established: 1997
General location: Northeastern
Location and Access: The Masoala Peninsula lies east of Maroansetra, a 2-3 hour boatride from the town or a 5 day hike
Description: The Masoala Peninsula is one of the most biodiverse places on earth. The tropical rainforests extend from the white sand beaches of the Bay of Antongil to the mountainous center 1224 meters above sea level. Within the park visitors can find ecosystems ranging from coral reefs to mid-altitude rainforests. It is estimated that the forests of the Antongil Bay watershed contain 50% of Madagascar's biodiversity, despite making up less than 2% of its land mass.
Masoala National park includes the 520 ha Special Reserve of Nosy Mangabe and more than 20 "multiple use zones" that allow local people to fish, collect food, harvest medicinal plants, and cut wood for construction under the supervision of park officials to ensure a that their activities do not exceed sustainable levels.
A total of 520,000 ha has some form of protection on the Masoala peninsula, a large area is considered a "zone of action" and is theoretically protected from certain activities.
Despite its protected status, Masoala park still suffers from encroachment from villages, illegal logging (especially ebony and rosewood), and hunting and poaching of lemurs and carnivores. Around 85,000 people live around the park which suffers a 1% deforestation rate according to Masoala - The Eye of the Forest A New Strategy for Rainforest Conservation in Madagascar
The forests of Masoala suffered significant damage during Cyclone Hudah which struck on April 2, 2000. According to NASA, Hudah was one of the most powerful storms ever recorded in the Indian Ocean with winds over 230 km/hr and gusts exceeding 380 km/hr. Masoala - The Eye of the Forest A New Strategy for Rainforest Conservation in Madagascar reports that red ruffed lemur population fell 50% in some areas and trees on windward slopes were stripped bare of their leaves. However, cyclones such as Hudah may play an important role in forest dynamics on the Masoala. Studies by the Missouri Botanical Gardens suggest that hardwoods - rosewood and ebony -- may survive cyclones better than other species while some tree species on the peninsula may have reproductive strategies that actually depend on periodic cyclones to trigger mast fruiting events (following Hudah, researchers observed a mass flowering in Masoala's rainforest).
Masoala National Park
http://www.wcs.org/international/Africa/madagascar/masoala
Aside from lemurs, Masoala contains a wealth of biodiversity. ... The creationof Masoala National Park on Oct. 18, 1997 entailed the efforts of an
Zoo Zürich - Home Zoo
http://www.zoo.ch/index.php?id=821
Der Zoo · Besuch im Zoo · Masoala · Agenda · Gastgeber Zoo · Wissen & Naturschutz ·Zoo Freunde. Aktuell. Zweite Elefantengeburt 2005 im Zoo Zürich: FAHIM
Zoo Zürich - Masoala
http://www.zoo.ch/Masoala.967.0.html
...- Kernstück ist der Masoala Regenwald. Ein attraktives Naturerlebnis mit Tieren... Durch direkte Beiträge soll der Masoala Regenwald im Zoo einen Drittel der
The Masoala Peninsula
http://www.rainbowtours.co.uk/countries/madagascar/info/features/the-masoala-peninsula.shtml
The Masoala Peninsula, in northeast Madagascar, holds the island's largestremaining lowland ... Masoala Peninsula and the offshore island, Nosy Mangabe
MBG: Madagascar Biodiversity and Conservation - Rainforest
http://www.mobot.org/mobot/madagascar/rainforest.asp?order=27&subdivision=masoala
The Bay of Antongil forms the west side of the Masoala Peninsula. Here in thenortheast corner of the Bay there is a small but very nice coral reef just
Conservation Ecology: Monitoring Impacts of Natural Resource ...
http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol2/iss2/art5/
Fig. 1. Photograph of rain forest on the Masoala Peninsula, Madagascar. ... Fig.4. Map of the Masoala Peninsula, Madagascar, and location of study area.
Masoala peninsula travel guide
http://www.world66.com/africa/madagascar/masoalapeninsula
Masoala peninsula travel guide - The best resource for sights, hotels, restaurants,... If you do know any general information about Masoala peninsula
Masoala - Wikipedia
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masoala
...- Bedeutende Gebiete der Halbinsel Masoala sind Teil eines Nationalparks, ...Masoala kely (Klein-Masoala) nannten madagassische Gäste eine im Sommer 2003 im
PACSOA - Masoala
http://www.pacsoa.org.au/palms/Masoala/
Masoala, Home. kona · madagascariensis. For further information try. RBG KewSpecies List · Home · Palms · Cycads · Places · BookShop · Up.
AMNH Madagascar Expedition - Parc National de Masoala
http://research.amnh.org/ichthyology/madagasca/masoala.html
Marine Fish Collection in Madagascar November 11 – 28, 2003 Parc National deMasoala Masoala, Tampolo, and Tanjona Marine Parks
Masoala madagascariensis
http://www.rarepalmseeds.com/pix/MasMad.shtml
Masoala madagascariensis. A most unusual and truly stunning palm, native torainforests at low altitudes in the northeast of Madagascar.
Madagascar- Masoala National Park, Diversity of
http://www.pulseplanet.com/archive/Jul04/3222.html
Since 1997, Masoala Park has been helping to preserve those species. ... Located ona peninsula in northeast Madagascar, Masoala Park includes both marine
RECENT NEWS Dell becomes carbon neutral by saving endangered lemurs (08/06/2008)Every year as much as one-third of Dell, the world's largest computer maker, announced it has become the first major technology company to achieve carbon neutrality.
Population of critically endangered lemurs discovered in Madagascar (7/22/2008) Scientists in Madagascar have discovered a population of greater bamboo lemurs (Prolemur simus), a critically endangered species of primate, in an area more than 400 kilometers away from its only known refuge, reports conservation International.
Lemurs are key to health of Madagascar's rainforests (06/12/2008) Lemurs play a key role in the health of Madagascar's tropical rainforests said a renowned primatologist speaking at a meeting of conservation biologists in Paramaribo, Suriname.
Madagascar signs big carbon deal to fund rainforest conservation (06/11/2008> Madagascar will sell more than nine million tons of carbon offsets to fund rainforest conservation in a newly established protected area. conservationists say the deal protect endangered wildlife, promote sustainable development to improve the economic well-being of people living in and around the park area, and help fight global warming.
Conservation is saving lemurs and helping people in Madagascar (5/7/2007) Madagascar, an island nation that lies off the coast of southeastern Africa, has long been famous for its unique and diverse species of wildlife, especially lemurs--primates found nowhere else on the planet. In recent years, the island country has also become world-renowned for conservation efforts that are succeeding in spite of extraordinary pressures from a poor population that relies heavily on forest burning for basic subsistence. A large part of this success is due to the early efforts of Patricia Wright, a primatologist who has been working in the country for more than 20 years. Wright led the effort to launch the country's leading protected area and helped Madagascar become a leading global example of conservation despite its economic adversity.
Pictures of Masoala
