Madagascar.

Birds

When Madagascar split from what is now mainland Africa all those millions of years ago most of flora and fauna went on to evolve into very distinct and unique organisms found today only on the Red Island. Birds are different however because they are so mobile. Once the split began, birds could still fly across the ever widening stretch of water with little effort. However there are still a large number of birds which today are endemic (restricted to a particular area) to Madagascar. What is interesting about Malagasy birds is that whole orders of birds (families of birds) occur only in Madagascar. The parrot above right is an example of this. There are two dark brown parrots found on Madagascar that are found nowhere else in Africa. The Cuckoo-Roller is another example. How did such a big bird evolve in Madagascar and have no relative on mainland Africa? There are many other examples. There is a lot of discussion as to the taxonomy of Malagasy birds and there is still a lot of work to be done.

There are approx. 209 breeding species of bird in Madagascar and of these, 120 species are endemic. Of these 120 species, 80 are forest dwelling birds, so the importance of conservation of the forests arises for these birds in particular. Madagascar birds are so dependent on the forest that many species are considered globally threatened because of habitat degradation and loss.
There are currently 294 species of birds listed as being recorded in Madagascar. Now I find this extraordinary. Such a small list of birds for such a big island! Little Ireland has over 450 species recorded. I would hazard a guess and say that there is a simple answer to this. There are more birdwatchers in Ireland and this means that the bird record is better compiled. Having said that, on my first visit to Madagascar in 2001 I was surprised by the lack of birds. There were two avid birdwatchers in that group and both of us struggled to find birds to look at. It was June, which is the middle of the Malagasy winter but even mid winter in Ireland is highly productive for birders. So what was the problem with the lack of birds? I took a different approach in 2004 and 2007 making sure that I was up at the crack of dawn most mornings and this proved most rewarding. I also concentrated more on the forest areas we were in and this also proved more fruitful. You can always see kites, egrets and pied crows during the heat of the day but the smaller woodland birds and certainly birds like the Couas are best seen early morning. The Tsingy was quite productive, especially around the approach boundaries where The Paradise Flycatchers, Cuckoo-Roller, Ashy Cuckoo Shrike, Green Pigeon etc were all seen albeit at a distance. The birds seemed so wary of us.

Kirindy is a great place for birdwatching and each early morning effort produced a string of new birds for me with The Crested Coua, Madagascar Magpie Robin and a Madagascar Harrier Hawk which appeared just as I was changing a lens on the camera. Typical. In 2004 the same thing happened to me when I was changing a lens and two Striped Mongoose walked past me. I just froze. If I had moved to put the lens on they would have run off.

The habitat most threatened in Madagascar is the wetlands and marsh areas which are constantly being drained for agriculture. There is an interesting story about one of Madagascar's most endangered birds, The Madagascar Pochard. It was last seen alive in 1991 when one was caught in a fishermans net and subsequently died in captivity. It was presumed to be extinct as the previous records for it dated back to a single pair in 1970. In 2004, I was sitting on the banks of the Tsiribihina river chatting with our boat crew and showing them my field guide to Madagascar's birds. When I reached the page on the Madagascar Pochard they pointed to it and gave me the local name for it. I told them that it was a probably no longer alive and they insisted that they had seen it on small lakes in the areas north of the river. None of the crew could speak or read English so they identified the duck from the photograph alone. The Madagascar Pochard had last been recorded in Lake Alaotra in the north central highlands so the area where the guides claimed it existed is miles away from the highlands. Interestingly the Pochard was rediscovered in 2006 in a wetlands area further north of Lake Alaotra with as many as 22 adults now recorded there. So there is still a chance of finding even more populations of this seriously threatened duck.

I must also mention the Madagascar Fish Eagle, Haliaeetus vociferoides, which is one of the seven most endangered raptors in the world. Currently there are about 75 nesting pairs known. It is Madagascar's largest bird of prey and it's conservation is now a matter of priority. Since 1991 The Peregrine Fund has done amazing work in the study and conservation of this fabulous bird. Their web site is here and you can donate to them if you are a fan of raptors.

You should photograph every bird, or animal for that matter, that you encounter on your Madagascar travels. You never know what you will find. A new species perhaps!

Please click on the photos link opposite left to see our images of Birds in Madagascar.

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