Whether you’re an individual passionate about conservation, a zoo seeking to expand your impact, or a business wanting to donate to philanthropic causes, every dollar donated to the Lemur Conservation Network impacts lemur conservation.
In this blog post, we share the results of one project supported by LCN’s small grant program.
Grantee Edgar Rabevao Works to Survey and Protect the Forest Fragment in Mantsindambo
Edgar Rabevao is a PhD student and English professor at the Regional University Centre of SAVA Region (CURSA), Antalaha. In 2024, he was awarded a $1500 small grant for a conservation project in Mantsindambo. This 15 hectare forest is located in the Antalaha-SAVA region in northeastern Madagascar. The SAVA region contains several parks rich in wildlife, including Marojejy and Makira National Parks, and the Anjanaharibe Sud Special Reserve. Antahala is east of these 3 parks and along the coast.
Edgar inherited the forest of Mantsindambo from his father with the instruction to protect and conserve the forest and its biodiversity. Fulfilling his promise, Edgar created a project to inventory the biodiversity of Mantsindambo and educate the surrounding community on the importance of the forest.
The Importance of Protecting Forest Fragments outside National Parks and Reserves
Madagascar’s national parks and protected areas are critical for protecting biodiversity and bringing in revenue through ecotourism. Yet, much of Madagascar’s biodiversity exists outside of protected areas. Monitoring biodiversity outside of protected areas and educating surrounding communities on the importance and value of their natural resources is essential for sustainable conservation.
Studying the Biodiversity of Mantsindambo
Thanks to the work of Edgar and his students, we have a much richer understanding of the plant and animal biodiversity in Mantsindambo. Edgar’s project aimed to survey biodiversity in a currently unprotected area and educate the surrounding community in hopes of bringing awareness to the importance of long term sustainability.
Field Experience for Undergraduate Malagasy Students
In addition to benefiting the local community, Edgar’s project also created an opportunity for two undergraduate CURSA students to gain valuable field experience. The students created their own capstone projects and graduated with degrees in Science and Technology! Learn more about their research in the abstracts provided at the end of this article.
Biodiversity Found in the Mantsindambo Forest
Lemurs
The team found 6 lemur species in the 15ha forest fragment of Mantsindambo!
Plants
They identified 95 plant species in 77 genera belonging to 53 families. The most common plant families were Rubiaceae, Arecaceae, Convallariaceae, Fabaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Ebenaceae.
Other Animals
Interviewing the Community in Andranofotsy
To understand how natural resources were being used, Edgar and his students conducted interviews in the local community.
Village members made use of 44 plant species and 14 animal species. Species in the flowering genera Faucherea and Mammea were the most commonly used plants. Lemur and tenrec species were the most commonly consumed animals.
While lemurs are protected species and hunting them is illegal, knowledge of and enforcement of the law is very weak.
Learn more about bushmeat consumption in Madagascar.
Next Steps: Environmental Education with Nearby Villages
Edgar’s next steps for his conservation project in Mantsindambo include environmental education initiatives in adjacent villages. Given the high reliance of village members on resources within the small forest fragment (15ha), sustainable management is essential. Additionally, the community is likely unaware of the illegality of lemur hunting. Edgar hopes that increasing awareness will lead to conscious forest management.
Research Abstracts from the CURSA Students
Inventory of Lemurs In the Mantsindambo Andranofotsy-Antalaha Forest Fragment
By Randrianambinina Thierry
Madagascar is known for its unique biodiversity, and particularly for its lemurs. Many of these species are still poorly known and little information about them is available. While there are many places that have never been inventoried including this fragment. The aim of this study is to identify the specific wealth of lemurs in this forest fragment. Transect line observation (diurnal/nocturnal monitoring), systematic habitat searches and surveys of guides were used to collect and process data. This enabled us to inventory six species of lemur in this site. Of these, two are diurnal (Hapalemur occidentalis and Eulemur albifrons) in the LEMURIDAE family and four are nocturnal, two of which (Microcebus mittermeieri, Cheirogaleus crossleyi) belong to the CHEIROGALEIDAE family, one (Avahi laniger) to the INDRIIDAE family and one (Lepilemur seali) to the LEPILEMURIDAE family. A total of 46 individuals were counted at this site. The most abundant species was Microcebus mittermeieri (30 out of 46 individuals), followed by Cheirogaleus crossleyi (two out of 46 individuals). In terms of relative density, Microcebus mittermeieri has the highest density at 208 to 508 individuals/km2 and Cheirogaleus crossleyi the lowest at 40 individuals/km2. Our analysis shows that Microcebus mittermeieri is the most abundant species and Cheirogaleus crossleyi the least abundant. In short, the Mantsindambo forest fragment is home to six lemur species, making it a rich community, as few forest fragments in this district show high levels of lemur species richness.
Ecological Characterization of the Forest Fragment of Mantsindambo Andranofotsy-Antalaha
By Rasoarimalala Cathelysa Virginie
The ecological characterization represents the first study carried out in the fragmented forest of Mantsindambo. This research aims to determine the characteristic of the plants of this forest in order to contribute to its conservation and the protection of the species it shelters. The specific objectives include the inventory of species, the analysis of the plant structure, the observation of the phenological state, the study of natural regeneration, the measurement of the canopy cover and the assessment of plant diversity. For achieving such objectives. Placeau de Braun-Blanquet, vertical structure of the vegetation, the study of natural regeneration and the canopy cover as well as adopted methods. The most common species in the plots are Dracaena reflexa with an abundance of 18.53%, Dypsis lutescens 11.07%, Mantalania sp 10.40% and Cynometra sp 10.43%. According to the plant structure, the vegetation is composed of three strata: lower, middle and upper. The plant cover is characterized by two different covers: slightly open to semi open, depending on the observed coverage rate.