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Zoomarine

Zoological Garden in Italy, and a member of the EAZA network

 

Lemurs in Zoomarine

Zoomarine has now lemurs in their zoological collection! Four lemurs catta has been recently included.

Lemurs conservation in Zoomarine

The Zoomarine has many educational events and activities that aim to raise awareness and make crowdfunding supporting conservation projects. Is on going the agreement with the University of Pisa in Italy, where professors work on in situ projects at the Berenty Reserve and ex-situ cognitive research on different species of Lemurs.

Zoomarine follows the guideline of EAZA (European Association of Zoos and Aquaria) and the indication of the TAG group for the species and all national regulation regarding the health check of animals and under strict check for zoonosis. The park has 2 full-time veterinarians that always monitors the health and welfare of the species hosted and periodically make many Reports for the Direction and the National Ministry of Environment and Health.

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Cougar Mountain Zoo

The Cougar Mountain Zoo is located in Issaquah, Washington, USA.

Lemurs at Cougar Mountain Zoo

Our current collection consists of two ring-tailed troops, black and white ruffed and red ruffs. We are looking to expand to four lemur species after the completion of our new World of Lemur exhibit. Our facility focuses on conservation through education and the role these species play as wildlife ambassadors.

Lemur conservation efforts at Cougar Mountain Zoo

The main objective at the Cougar Mountain Zoo is Conservation through Education.

The Zoo’s lemur collection serves as ambassadors for their wild kin during in-person/virtual lectures, demonstrations, and tours. Zoo personnel provides visitors daily with general information on lemur species, as well as ongoing national and global conservation. From there, visitors are able to support additional conservation groups based upon their interests.

The new World of Lemur facility in the final stages of completion will have the capabilities to aid in breeding conservation for lemurs, with the goal to contribute to maintaining the genetic diversity of a dwindling species. Following the debut of this new facility, Cougar Mountain Zoo will be looking into additional avenues in supporting lemur conservation, either through facilitation or participation.

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Lemur Conservation Foundation

Lemur Conservation Foundation logo The Lemur Conservation Foundation helps conserve lemurs through managed breeding programs, outreach, and on-the-ground conservation.

Saving lemurs through managed breeding programs, educational outreach, and on-the-ground conservation efforts.

Critically endangered mongoose lemur born at LCF in 2014.

Critically endangered mongoose lemur born at LCF in 2014.

The Lemur Conservation Foundation (LCF) is a non-profit corporation dedicated to the preservation and conservation of the primates of Madagascar through managed breeding, scientific research, and education. The foundation and accompanying lemur reserve focus on fostering natural lemur behavior to encourage a dynamic population.

LCF supports educational programs started by the late Dr. Alison Jolly in Madagascar and is developing content to bring those programs to classrooms in the United States. In addition, LCF provides financial support to assist in the establishment of a tourist and research camp in Anjanaharibe-Sud Special Reserve in northeast Madagascar, home to the elusive silky sifaka and a unique population of indri with black pelage.

What lemurs does the Lemur Conservation Foundation protect?

At their reserve in Florida, the Lemur Conservation Foundation is home to over 45 lemurs of six different species, most of which are critically endangered or endangered. LCF is a Certified Related Facility with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and participates in their Species Survival Plans which work to maintain a genetic safety net for a variety of lemur species. The species currently housed at the reserve are:

  • Collared lemurs (Eulemur collaris)
  • Mongoose lemur (Eulemur mongoz)
  • Sanford’s lemur (Eulemur sanfordi)
  • Common brown lemurs (Eulemur fulvus)
  • Red ruffed lemurs (Varecia rubra)
  • Ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta)

How is the Lemur Conservation Foundation protecting habitat for lemur conservation?

Demarcation signs funded by LCF to outline the boundary of the Anjanaharibe-Sud Special Reserve.

Demarcation signs funded by LCF to outline the boundary of the Anjanaharibe-Sud Special Reserve.

Lemur Conservation Foundation is supporting projects in Anjanaharibe-Sud Special Reserve (ASSR), a large mountainous rainforest in northeastern Madagascar, which has long been recognized as a lemur priority site that has received little attention. LCF has partnered with the Madagascar National Parks to provide boundary demarcations for this protected area and is working towards developing a site called Camp Indri into a functioning base camp for tourists and researchers. At least 11 lemur species are found here including:

  • Indri (Indri indri)
  • Silky sifaka (Propithecus candidus)
  • Aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis)
  • Mittermeier’s mouse lemurs (Microcebus mittermeieri)
  • Northern bamboo lemur (Hapalemur occidentalis)

LCF also collaborates with École Normale Supérieure (ENS), the teachers’ training arm of the University of Antananarivo. This partnership supports the students of ENS in their field research and field work theses at the Berenty Reserve, a private wildlife reserve in southern Madagascar. Research done at Berenty includes lemur census surveys and plant phenology.

Helping lemurs in captivity

A family of Lemur catta in one of LCF’s semi free-ranging forests, where field students can observe lemurs in a natural environment.

A family of Lemur catta in one of LCF’s semi free-ranging forests, where field students can observe lemurs in a natural environment.

The Lemur Conservation Foundation operates a 100 acre reserve in Myakka City, Florida. The reserve is set up with two semi free-ranging forests, each approximately ten acres, and two traditional enclosure buildings. As a Certified Related Facility with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, LCF participates in the Eulemur Species Survival Plan (SSP), Ruffed Lemur SSP, and Ring-tailed Lemur SSP, which include a global network of institutions working towards the propagation of selected lemur species in order to ensure the healthy existence of those species whose survival is in peril.

LCF also hosts field training programs, in which professors and their students utilize the facility and the lemur colony for behavioral observations and research on social dynamics and cognitive skills, as well as habitat use and food selection. These training programs produce future primatologists and conservation biologists which will carry the conservation imperative forward for lemurs and other endangered species and fostering and inspiring conservation based careers is an invaluable part of LCF’s mission.

Partnering with local communities

Educational Outreach

The first book in the Ako Project series, Ako the Aye-Aye.

The first book in the Ako Project series, Ako the Aye-Aye.

LCF has the pleasure of continuing on Dr. Alison Jolly’s legacy with the Ako Project, in collaboration with Dr. Hanta Rasamimanana, Dr. Jolly’s former colleague, professor at ENS, and Madagascar’s “Lemur Lady”. The Ako Project, sponsored by EnviroKidz, is an educational children’s book series, translated in both English and Malagasy, which is intended to teach Malagasy children about different species of lemur in a fun, tangible way. The books come with matching curriculum to help teachers convey the conservation themes and concepts envisioned for the stories.

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Reniala NGO and Lemur Rescue Center

Lemur Rescue CenterThe Reniala NGO works to rehabilitate lemurs from the illegal pet trade in southwest Madagascar.

Supporting lemur conservation through habitat protecting and captive lemur rehabilitation

The Reniala NGO aims to protect the forests of the Reniala reserve, rehabilitate lemurs from the bushmeat and pet trade at the Lemur Rescue Center, and develop alternative livelihood projects such as beekeeping.

What lemur species does the Reniala NGO protect?

ONG RenialaThe Reniala NGO protects several species of lemur through their activities, including ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta).

Through their work, the organization facilitates research programs on ring-tailed lemurs including researchers from the United States and from within Madagascar. Research projects include nocturnal lemur monitoring through camera traps as well as many projects examining lemur behavior, feeding, and health, as well as social science studies on the attitudes of local communities towards wildlife.

How does the Reniala NGO protect habitat for lemur conservation?

The Reniala NGO manages a 6 km-squared protected area of dry spiny forest, located 29 km north of Toliara, a larger city in southwest Madagascar.

Helping lemurs in captivity

ONG RenialaThe Lemur Rescue Center (LRC) – which is one of the Reniala NGO’s projects – houses 25 individual ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) which were confiscated as part of the illegal pet and bushmeat trades in Madagascar. This project aims to care for, rehabilitate, and eventually release these lemurs back into the wild. It is hoped that the lemurs will be reintroduced into the Reniala Reserve, which is a forest that is managed by the organization. In addition, the organization anticipates it will play a larger role in the rehabilitation and transport of lemurs across Madagascar in the next few years.

Rehabilitation and reintroduction of lemurs into the wild is not an easy process; the Reniala NGO is one of the few facilities in Madagascar that is authorized to undertake this work. Ring-tailed lemurs – like any other lemur species – are difficult to reintroduce into the wild. Therefore, animals that cannot be released – such as those that have lost the ability to forage for food – will be cared for at the center for the duration of their lives.

Given the scale of the pet and bushmeat trade in Madagascar, there are always more lemurs waiting to be rehabilitated than the facility can hold. Therefore, efforts are underway to increase the capacity of the Rescue Center over the next few years.

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Duke Lemur Center

Duke Lemur Center logo.

Saving lemurs through scientific breakthroughs and on-the-ground conservation programming.

Founded in 1966, the Duke Lemur Center (DLC) at Duke University (Durham, North Carolina, USA) is an internationally acclaimed non-invasive research center housing over 200 lemurs across 14 species—the most diverse population of lemurs on Earth, outside their native Madagascar.

Because all of its research is non-invasive, the DLC is open to the public and educates more than 35,000 visitors annually. Its highly successful conservation breeding program seeks to preserve vanishing species such as the aye-aye, Coquerel’s sifaka, and blue-eyed black lemur, while its Madagascar Conservation Programs study and protect lemurs—the most endangered mammals on Earth—in their native habitat. The Division of Fossil Primates examines primate extinction and evolution over time and houses over 35,000 fossils, including extinct giant lemurs and one of the world’s largest and most important collections of early anthropoid primates.

SAVA Conservation Project 

 

In 2011, the DLC initiated the SAVA Conservation project in the northeast SAVA region, an acronym that stands for the four districts in the region: Sambava, Andapa, Vohemar, and Antalaha. The DLC-SAVA Conservation project is dedicated to preserving the natural biodiversity of Madagascar — especially its charismatic lemurs — by empowering local communities to be conservation leaders. Our goals are preserving natural environments as well as increasing sustainability and resilience. We achieve these goals through activities centered on education, reforestation, sustainable agriculture, fuel-efficient stoves, research, and much more.

The mission of DLC-SAVA Conservation is to conserve biodiversity in Madagascar by supporting the livelihoods of rural people in forest-bordering communities and through collaborations with researchers, local environmental organizations, and governmental institutions.

DLC-SAVA Conservation activities

Through our network of partners, the DLC-SAVA Conservation activities include:

Environmental education (EE):

    • EE working group: DLC sponsors a working group of local educators and school administrators to co-design conservation education programs for schools.
    • Lemur awareness campaign: noticing a remarkable increase in reports of lemur hunting, in 2021 the DLC began a mobile interpretive center that reaches diverse schools throughout the SAVA region. Partnering with school administrators and the EE working group, DLC staff visit schools, deliver presentations about the local lemur species, why lemurs are important, that they shouldn’t be hunted, and how to protect them. They give posters to the schools, and use lemur activity books to create their own posters about lemurs. All students finish with an evaluation and receive a certificate of lemur appreciation. Almost 400 students have participated in the lemur awareness campaign as of the writing of this article (July 2021), with 30-50 students being served each week.

Children proudly display their Lemur Appreciation certificates after a school visit in Manantenina

    • EE teacher training: Since 2012, DLC has run workshops for all the schools in the Sambava and Andapa districts. These workshops bring together 10-15 trainers, upwards of 250 teachers, and school administrators for 5-day lessons on how to implement environmental education into the curriculum. Founded on years of development between Malagasy conservationists and educators, the training centers around a manual that guides the teachers in integrating nature into every day lessons. Almost 3,000 teachers have been trained as of 2021, and all schools in the two districts have been reached. We now plan to expand to the Antalaha district.
    • Supporting local educators: The DLC partners with the New Generation School Garden, an interpretive center and demonstration farm that invites learners of all ages for educational lesson plans. Run by SAVA conservation activist BENASOAVINA Evrard, the aim of the garden is for visitors to have an engaging experience in nature and learn about sustainability and biodiversity. Through the NGSG and DLC, over 100 students have had 3 interactive lessons at the garden, with a goal of 300 students per year.

School children from the village of Ambatofitotra, near Sambava, during a visit to the New Generation School Garden. All visitors plant trees at the garden to commemorate their visit.

Landscape restoration:

    • The DLC maintains tree nurseries with communities to supply high quality seedlings of diverse trees including over a dozen native species, cash crops like coffee, cloves, and cacao, and over a dozen fruit species. As of the writing of this article, we partner with five communities to maintain tree nurseries and support their reforestation efforts. Each nursery produces approximately 25,000 seedlings per year, which are distributed to the community members to plant on their lands and during group planting events. The DLC staff provide consultation on proper planting techniques and follow up evaluations to determine seedling survival.

DLC sponsored tree nursery with the local school at Belaoka-Marovato, Andapa district.

    • We are partnered with local collaborators to maintain and monitor 4 reforestation plantations throughout the SAVA region, with over 59,000 trees planted on 20 hectares in 2021, and plans for a similar effort in 2022.

CURSA Director, Dr. MANJARIBE Christophe (left) demonstrates proper tree planting techniques with staff and students at their demonstration agroforestry field station.

Promoting aquaculture:

    • To diversify diets and incomes, and as a sustainable alternative to bushmeat, DLC pairs local leaders in fish farming with rural farmers for training in fish production. One model aquaculture project recently harvested over 13kg of fish within 4 months of restocking the pond. The harvested fish were shared among the parents who have made their own ponds so they could stock theirs, as well as a lunch for the school children, and some were sold to raise money for a new blackboard for the school.

Collaboration with Madagascar National Parks:

    • To increase protection and monitoring of parks, especially Marojejy, in recent years, we have continued to sponsor clearing the park limits, painting trees, and hanging new signs for boundary demarcation, and a road-block barrier to prevent trucks from transporting precious wood out of the forest. DLC also collaborates with the MNP to support monitoring by village guards and park staff.

Clear delineation of the park boundaries is essential to maintaining and monitoring the forest.

    • Installation of a potable water well at Manantenina in 2021: This village near the Marojejy National Park lacks reliable sources of clean water because local sources are often contaminated with disease-causing microbes. The DLC created a partnership agreement with the community to install a deep-water well that will maintain safe water even during the dry season.

Research:

  • In collaboration with the local university (CURSA), we are studying lemur viability in protected areas in SAVA, starting in 2020. One Malagasy PhD student and four Masters candidates are currently partnering with DLC and WWF to develop their thesis projects on the ecology and conservation of lemurs in the COMATSA, a corridor between Marojejy, Anjanaharibe-Sud, and Tsaratanana.
    • In addition to research in the forest on lemurs, the team conducts socio-ecological research with the communities. Through focus groups, key-informant interviews, and lemur awareness campaigns, the team is learning about how people use forest resources, especially the level of hunting.

CURSA researchers and local forest managers in the COMATSA protected area of the SAVA region.

  • In collaboration with CURSA, we are studying the links between socioeconomics, agriculture, nutrition, and health. Two Malagasy PhD students are developing their theses, one focusing on nutritional health and the other on connections between agriculture and socioeconomics.

Information campaign and distribution of fuel-efficient ‘rocket’ stoves:

  • More than 80% of people in Madagascar use firewood or charcoal to cook. We partner with the Swiss organization ADES, which produces fuel-efficient stoves in Madagascar that burn 1/3 the biomass of firewood or charcoal compared to traditional stoves. Between 2020 and 2021 alone, over 500 households received training and subsidized stoves. Stoves are sold during demonstrations, and through local entrepreneurs serving as distributors. We are evaluating participants, and found 100% of users are satisfied and save 25-50kg of charcoal on average per month.

Women’s reproductive health

  • We maintain collaboration with British NGO Marie Stopes International, to support nurses visiting remote villages and providing consultation and services on women’s health and reproduction. Over 1,500 women have been served in 23 rural villages.

Serving as a platform for Duke researchers and students:

  • The following departments at Duke have active projects in collaboration with DLC:
    • Duke Evolutionary Anthropology and Global Health (NSF-NIH funded research project)
    • Duke Nicholas School of the Environment Masters Program and the Duke Carbon Offset Initiative (investigating Madagascar reforestation programs for carbon offsets).

Collaboration with CURSA to promote capacity strengthening:

    • Two graduates of CURSA are pursuing Masters programs in the capital, supported by DLC scholarships.
    • Ten students (50% women) are currently enrolled in a DLC Agroecology Internship program, conducting workshops in sustainable agriculture and agroforestry, consulting with farmers about transitioning to sustainable techniques, evaluating programs, and leading in agribusiness entrepreneurship venues.
    • Educational workshops to develop skills:
      • Genetics with 30 students at CURSA in 2018. The workshop was led by DLC scientists Marina Blanco and Lydia Green, and focused on hands-on skills development in molecular biology methods.
      • Field Ecology and Conservation with 35 seniors at the university in 2019. The workshop included one week of field training on data collection in the Marojejy National Park, and one week of data analysis and scientific presentations and writing. The program culminated with students giving presentations on their results and experiences during the training. DLC-SAVA staff served as supervisors and thesis readers for four students preparing senior theses.
      • Scientific Methods and Natural History Collections, serving 30 seniors in 2021. Malagasy scientists Drs. RAMIADANTSOA Tanjona and RAKOTOARISON Andolalao from Antananarivo led a week-long course on the scientific method, principles of research design, and natural history collections especially focusing on rare reptiles and amphibians of the SAVA region.
    • Small research grants were awarded to 15 students to complete their Honors theses. Diverse topics included primatology, herpetology, hydrology, nutrition, agriculture, and evaluations of the DLC reforestation and fish farming projects, to name a few.

Regenerative agroecology:

  • DLC partners with CURSA to deliver a value-added package for students and farmers to develop skills in agroecology, including home gardens, regenerative agriculture, and agroforestry. Over 10 workshops have been conducted with ~200 participants (>50% women) between 2019 and 2021. Monthly evaluations show that about 40% of participants have adopted techniques learned during workshops and applied them in their own agriculture.
    • Women are so crucial to the agricultural value chain and are unfortunately marginalized. We began workshops specifically focusing on women, led by female trainers and attended exclusively by women. These have led to the creation of several Women’s Farmers Associations, who are coordinating their efforts to increase productivity and profitability for their small home gardens.

Women of Mandena village during an Agroecology workshop led by women, for women

 

New collaborations with the NGO Positive Planet and the spice company Virginia Dare.

  • Promoting improved regenerative agroforestry coupled with agribusiness projects with farmers. These projects seek to strengthen professional skills for farmers to develop agroforestry systems that will increase productivity and restore the landscape. In addition, skills-development in family farm budgets as well as village savings and loans associations (VSLAs) strengthen farmers’ socioeconomic resilience. These VSLAs give farmers access to banking and loan services managed by the communities, overcoming barriers of access to official banks.

These projects and more are active areas of research, conservation, and development by the DLC in partnership with our collaborators in Madagascar. We are proud to highlight the work of our partners, without whom the DLC could not achieve our goals. The collaborations with CURSA, MNP, DREDD, the Ministry of Education, local farmers and activists are all essential to meeting our common goals of conservation.

DLC-SAVA Conservation team

Charlie Welch, DLC Conservation Coordinator – Charlie is based at the Duke Lemur Center in Durham, NC and has nearly 35 years of experience working in Madagascar conservation, including 15 years living in Madagascar. In 2004, Welch was awarded the Chevalier de l’Ordre National by the government of Madagascar for conservation accomplishments in the Tamatave region, while with the Madagascar Fauna and Flora group. Welch now coordinates all project activities, both at the DLC and in Madagascar. Contact: charles.welch@duke.edu.

 

James Herrera, Ph.D., DLC-SAVA Program Coordinator – James is based in the SAVA region of Madagascar, with 10+ years of experience with conservation research and outreach in Madagascar. James conducted his Ph.D. at Stony Brook University with Dr. Patricia Wright, studying lemur evolution, ecology, and conservation. He was a research fellow at the American Museum of Natural History, and a researcher with Duke University’s Evolutionary Anthropology department and Duke Global Health Institute. James oversees the implementation and evaluation of all project activities in Madagascar. Contact: james.herrera@duke.edu.

 

Lanto AndrianandrasanaDLC-SAVA Project Coordinator – Lanto is based in SAVA region of Madagascar. He has worked in the SAVA since 2009 and has been with DLC-SAVA since its inception in 2011. Lanto has been involved in research, with a master’s degree in Paleontology, as well as lemur behavior and conservation. Lanto is responsible for project administration in SAVA and the coordination of our activities with local partners. Contact: lha3@duke.edu.

 

 

Evrard BenasoavinaDLC-SAVA Education specialist – Evrard is from the SAVA region and has worked with DLC-SAVA since 2020. Evrard has a background in biodiversity research and conservation, ecotourism, and agriculture. He created the New Generation School Garden, an interpretive center to valorize biodiversity and ecosystem services, especially related to natural resource management. Evrard leads in our education and outreach programs, including lemur awareness campaigns, school group visits to his center, and more.

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Lemur Love, Inc.

Lemur Love Logo

Protect lemurs. Empower women. Further science.

Lemur Love conducts scientific research and ​partners with Malagasy women to build capacity and promote conservation.


Lemur Love believes in leveraging both the heart and the mind in the movement to preserve Madagascar’s unique and Endangered primates, the lemurs.

Our goal is to ensure lemurs thrive in their forest homes through the power of women, ​science, and our extended global ‘troop’. We envision a world where both lemurs and humans thrive.

 

Lemur Love conducts and disseminates scientific long-term research on ring-tailed lemur populations in the northern portion of Tsimanampesotse. Moreover, along with our partners at the Pet Lemur Survey, we are committed to understanding the legal and illegal trades of wild lemurs through current and upcoming projects.

Lemur Love believes in investing in women, often underrepresented in both science and on the ground conservation leadership. Malagasy women possess unique insights and local knowledge that are crucial to devising robust solutions that will protect lemurs in the future. Lemur Love is collaborating with Ikala STEM, a women-led association that aims to promote education and science and to raise the profile of women in STEM in Madagascar.

 

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Conservation Fusion

Conservation Fusion LogoConservation Fusion connects communities across the world through education and environmental awareness raising.

Supporting lemur conservation through innovative education and outreach

Conservation Fusion connects communities across the world through innovative education programs that promote conservation actions. The organization currently focuses its efforts in Madagascar where it partners with research-oriented organizations – including the Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership – to undertake education outreach programs. Conservation Fusion has ongoing programs in northern (Antsiranana region), eastern (Analmazaotra and Kianjavato), and southern Madagascar (Lavavolo).

What lemur species does Conservation Fusion protect?

Conservation Fusion’s programing increases awareness at four sites across Madagascar which are home to the following species of lemur:

  • Aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis)
  • Black-and-white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata)
  • Diademed sifaka (Propithecus diadema)
  • Greater bamboo lemur (Prolemur simus)
  • Ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta)
  • Northern sportive lemur (Lepilemur septentrionalis)

Partnering with local communities

Conservation Fusion’s greatest successes have come from the relationships and collaborations that they have forged with researchers, local communities, and organizations who aim to complement Conservation Fusion’s education programs and vision.

Conservation fusion 2Southern Madagascar

Conservation Fusion continues to break barriers in its education-based programming; their work in southern Madagascar is just one of the many initiatives being undertaken to raise awareness in-country. Here, Conservation Fusion focuses on raising awareness of radiated tortoises, ring-tailed lemurs, and sifaka in the dry spiny forests of Lavavolo in southern Madagascar. Their outreach programs – which have been implemented for over three years – consist of hands-on activities with the local villages and schools and include: community gardens, agriculture training, workshops on using fuel-efficient Rocket Stove, and a junior researcher day.

Conservaiton fusion 1One of Conservation Fusion’s larger initiatives is the building of a “dream school”; a school that village elders wished to provide to their children but something that had only ever been a dream for them. Conservation Fusion has started construction on the school, and plans to provide teacher trainings, and teacher salaries for three years. The school – in partnership with Hug It Forward – is being built with recycled materials and school uniforms (bright yellow t-shirts featuring beautiful nature designs) where designed by students and community members at the University of Nebraska in Omaha.

Aye-aye puppets L. septentrionalis project Conservation Festival Conservation fusion

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Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership (MBP)

Madagascar Biodiversity Paternship logMadagascar Biodiversity Partnership works with communities on comprehensive research and conservation programming.

Supporting Lemur Conservation by believing that everything is connected, or “Mampifandray ny tontolo”

Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership Dr. Louis, Shelia Holmes and Varecia_ HHamilton

Dr. Louis and Sheila Holmes collecting data from a lemur.

The Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership (MBP) was founded in 2010 by Dr. Edward E. Louis Jr., Director of Conservation Genetics at Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium (OHDZA) who has been working in Madagascar since 1998. The MBP strives to protect local forests for the lemurs while sustainably raising the standard of living for communities who are equally reliant upon the natural resources. Believing that everything is connected, or “Mampifandray ny tontolo”, the MBP incorporates research, education and community involvement to achieve sustainability.

What Lemur Species does the Madagascar Biodiversity Project Protect?

Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership Baby Lepilemur septentrionalis_EE Louis Jr

A baby Lepilemur septentrionalis being examined.

MBP works across the country to support research and outreach related to several different lemur species, including:

 

  • Aye aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis)
  • Black-and-white ruffed lemurs (Varecia variegata)
  • Crowned lemur (Eulemur coronatus)
  • Diademed sifaka (Propithecus diadema)
  • Greater bamboo lemur (Prolemur simus; only about 300 individuals remain!)
  • Northern sportive lemur (Lepilemur septentrionalis; only about 50 individuals remain!)
  • Ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta)

The MBP is pioneering research on the northern sportive lemurs, whose populations are incredibly small (less than 50 individuals remaining) and who cannot be kept in captivity. In addition – and together with the Malagasy government – they have helped re-establish the diademed sifaka and the black-and-white ruffed lemur to their historical ranges in the Analamazoatra Special Reserve. These populations are now monitored by the MBP year-round. Finally, the MBP uses radio collars and other innovative technology to track lemur populations; this helps increase understanding of how different species use different types of habitat and how conservation programs can effectively protect lemurs in the future.

Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership Nore teaching planting techniques_HHamilton

Teaching planting techniques in rural Madagascar.

How is MBP Protecting Habitat for Lemur Conservation?

MBP is a leader in reforestation efforts in Madagascar, and undertakes programming in west (Andasibe, Kianjavato) and southern Madagascar (Lavavolo). The MBP also undertakes reforestation initiatives in the areas where it is working to distribute fuel-efficient cook stoves in northern Madagascar.

The MBP’s largest reforestation programming is based in Kianjavato and is called the Education Promoting Reforestation Project (EPRP). This program’s success is based on the fact that seeds which have passed through a lemur’s intestinal tract grow better than seeds that haven’t; by collecting the seeds in lemur poop, the MBP has been able to plant over 60,000 trees!

Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership EPP Kianjavato students with trees_HHamilton

Students from the Kianjavato public school students with trees.

This program – and the associated community education and outreach efforts – have been so successful that they were featured on National Public Radio in the United States and in other media outlets worldwide. Moving forward, the MBP hopes to plant one million trees and restore Kianjavato’s fragmented forest landscape.

Partnering with Local Communities

Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership Member of Single mothers Club planting trees_HHamilton

A member of Single Mothers Club planting trees.

Madagascar has a young and growing population that is increasingly reliant upon the country’s dwindling natural resources, which is compounded by their decreasing GDP. Despite the precarious conditions, there is room for hope. The MBP has initiated multiple community-based conservation efforts and development plans designed to rebalance the relationship between people and the ecosystem; many of their community outreach efforts are conducted together with Conservation Fusion.

Fuel-efficient cook stoves

In partnership with the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium and with Conservation Fusion, MBP is undertaking work to reduce the use of charcoal in some areas of Madagascar. Charcoal production – which causes large areas of forest to be cut down in Madagascar and is often unsustainable – is a big threat to lemur populations. MBP has distributed over 100 fuel-efficient cooking stoves and supplements these with hands-on education programs and reforestation initiatives.

Aquaponics development

Aquaponics is a sustainable food production method that combines techniques used to raise fish for food and hydroponics methods for growing plants in liquid mediums. Properly balanced aquaponics systems can provide large amounts of food, which is important in areas of Madagascar where families are food insecure – meaning, in areas where families do not have access to the food that they need, when they need it. MBP – in partnership with a Omaha-based aquaponics nonprofit – is undertaking pilot programs which will help fine-tune the implementation of this type of equipment on-the-ground in Madagascar.

Capacity building

Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership Prolemur simus eating bamboo_ BEnyart

Prolemur simus eating some bamboo.

As part of the MBP’s ongoing research programs, over 50 Malagasy doctorate and graduate students, 30 Malagasy undergraduate students, and 10 international students have received considerable training in research methods and conservation paradigms. For example, through the MBP’s role in helping to re-establish lemur populations in the Analamazoatra Special Reserve, students and local communities have received training on how to monitor these new populations and how re-establishment programs must be designed in order to be successful.

In addition, the MBP supports 80+ full-time Malagasy employees as field assistants, project supervisors, office employees, and supporting staff members.

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