Masoala National Park, in northeast

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

, is the largest of the island's protected areas. Most of the park is situated in Sava Region and a part in

Analanjirofo Analanjirofo is a region in northeastern Madagascar. Until 2009 it was a part of Toamasina Province. It borders Sava Region to the north, Sofia Region to the west, Alaotra-Mangoro Region to the southwest and Atsinanana Region to the south. The ...

. Created in 1997, the park protects 2,300 square kilometres of

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainforest, ...

and 100 square kilometres of marine parks. The Masoala Peninsula is exceptionally diverse due to its large size, and variety of habitats. Altogether, the park protects tropical rainforest, coastal forest, flooded forest,

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

, and

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in sever ...

. Three marine parks protect

coral reefs A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. C ...

and a dazzling array of marine life. Masoala park madagascar map

Climate

This is an exceptionally wet area of Madagascar. The driest part of the year is from September to December. As the park is accessible only by a three-hour boat journey, the cyclone season (January to March) is best avoided.

Flora and fauna

There are ten

lemur Lemurs ( ) (from Latin ''lemures'' – ghosts or spirits) are wet-nosed primates of the superfamily Lemuroidea (), divided into 8 families and consisting of 15 genera and around 100 existing species. They are endemic to the island of Madag ...

species, including the

red ruffed lemur The red ruffed lemur (''Varecia rubra'') is one of two species in the genus ''Varecia'', the ruffed lemurs; the other is the black-and-white ruffed lemur (''Varecia variegata''). Like all lemurs, it is native to Madagascar. It occurs only in the ...

, which is native to the peninsula. The island reserve of

Nosy Mangabe Nosy Mangabe is a small island reserve located in Antongil Bay about 2 km offshore from the town of Maroantsetra in north-east Madagascar. it is accessible by small boat and is part of the larger Masoala National Park complex. It is a tropica ...

is one of the best sites in Madagascar to try to glimpse the elusive nocturnal

aye-aye The aye-aye (''Daubentonia madagascariensis'') is a long-fingered lemur, a strepsirrhine primate native to Madagascar with rodent-like teeth that perpetually grow and a special thin middle finger. It is the world's largest nocturnal primate. ...

. Masoala harbors many other species, such as the Madagascar day gecko, leaf-tailed gecko,

chameleons Chameleons or chamaeleons (family Chamaeleonidae) are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of Old World lizards with 202 species described as of June 2015. The members of this family are best known for their distinct range of colors, bein ...

of all sizes, spectacular birds such as the

helmet vanga The helmet vanga (''Euryceros prevostii'') is a distinctive-looking bird of the vanga family, Vangidae, and is classified in its own genus, ''Euryceros''. It is mainly blue-black, with rufous wings and a huge arched blue bill. It is restricted t ...

, and rare species such as the

red owl The red owl (''Tyto soumagnei'') is an owl in the barn owl family Tytonidae. It is also known as the Madagascar red owl, Madagascar grass-owl and Soumagne's owl. It is a rare resident of Madagascar that was virtually unknown from its discovery in ...

and tomato frog. Masoala is also home to the day-flying sunset moth, ''

Chrysiridia rhipheus ''Chrysiridia rhipheus'', the Madagascan sunset moth, is a species of day-flying moth of the family Uraniidae. It is considered one of the most impressive and appealing-looking lepidopterans. Famous worldwide, it is featured in most coffee table ...

''. The Madagascar serpent-eagle was recently rediscovered here, and exists in healthy populations only in this part of north east Madagascar. The tree '' Ephippiandra masoalensis'' is endemic to the park.Rabarimanarivo, M. 2020. ''Ephippiandra masoalensis''.

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biologi ...

2020: e.T137673521A137901533. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T137673521A137901533.en. Accessed 16 September 2022. Three marine parks are included in the Masoala National Park: Tampolo in the West, Ambodilaitry in the South, and Ifaho in the East. These are among the most diverse marine environments in Madagascar and are superb destinations for

kayaking Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits facin ...

and

snorkeling Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, ...

. Each year from July to early September, hundreds of

humpback whales The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hum ...

visit the

Antongil Bay ''Helodranon' Antongila'' (Bay of Antongila), more commonly called Antongil Bay in English, is the largest bay in Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no ...

during their long migration. The warm protected waters of the bay provide an ideal breeding and calving ground for these marine mammals.

Conservation and threats

In June 2007, Masoala was designated as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

as part of a cluster of parks, known collectively as

Rainforests of the Atsinanana The Rainforests of the Atsinanana is a World Heritage Site that was inscribed in 2007 and consists of 13 specific areas in six national parks in the eastern part of Madagascar: # Marojejy National Park # Masoala National Park # Zahamena Nationa ...

, that represent the biodiversity of the country's eastern rainforests. The other national parks included are Marojejy, Zahamena, Ranomafana, Andringitra, and Andohahela. During 2009 and 2010, the national park was invaded by thousands of illegal loggers searching for rosewood.

References

External links

Masoala National Park
official site
Trouble in Lemur Land
a professional 50 minute HD film about illegal rosewood logging in Madagascar and the impact on the silky sifaka lemur * Human Rights Issues, se
www.humanrightsmasoala.org
{{Authority control National parks of Madagascar Sava Region Analanjirofo Protected areas established in 1997 1997 establishments in Madagascar Madagascar lowland forests Important Bird Areas of Madagascar

Climate

Flora and fauna

Conservation and threats

See also

References

External links