Biogeographic timetable of Madagascar - journal

The

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is '' flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. ...

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 Afric ...

is a part of the

wildlife of Madagascar The composition of Madagascar's wildlife reflects the fact that the island has been isolated for about 88 million years. The prehistoric breakup of the supercontinent Gondwana separated the Madagascar-Antarctica-India landmass from the Africa-So ...

has been an isolated island for about 70 million years,

breaking away ''Breaking Away'' is a 1979 American coming of age comedy-drama film produced and directed by Peter Yates and written by Steve Tesich. It follows a group of four male teenagers in Bloomington, Indiana, who have recently graduated from high sc ...

from Africa around 165 million years ago, then from India nearly 100 million years later. This isolation led to the development of a unique

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

. Before humans arrived about 2,000 years ago, there were many large and unusual animals living there, descended from species that were originally present when Madagascar became an island, or from species that later crossed the sea to Madagascar. Ecological niches were often filled by animals with quite different histories from those on the African mainland, often leading to

convergent evolution Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different periods or epochs in time. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last com ...

. A large proportion of these endemic Malagasy animals have died out since the arrival of humans, most particularly the

megafauna In terrestrial zoology, the megafauna (from Greek μέγας ''megas'' "large" and New Latin ''fauna'' "animal life") comprises the large or giant animals of an area, habitat, or geological period, extinct and/or extant. The most common thresho ...

. Despite this, and massive

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated ...

, Madagascar is still home to an incredible array of wildlife, the vast majority of which is unique in the world. Madagascar is a primary spot for ecotourism, with more than fifty national parks and other protected reserves. There are believed to have been only four colonization events of terrestrial mammals from mainland Africa. They brought to Madagascar the ancestors of its tenrecs,

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 Madagas ...

carnivoran Carnivora is a monophyletic order of placental mammals consisting of the most recent common ancestor of all cat-like and dog-like animals, and all descendants of that ancestor. Members of this group are formally referred to as carnivorans, ...

s and nesomyine rodents. The other mammalian colonizations were those of the amphibious hippopotamuses (now extinct) and bats. Tanrek

Mammals

The

s are the best known of Madagascar's

mammal Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur ...

s. They can only be found on Madagascar. In the absence of monkeys and other competitors, these

primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians ( monkeys and apes, the latter includin ...

s have adapted to a wide range of habitats and diversified into numerous species. The tenrecs are another group of mammals characteristic of Madagascar. Most of the world's species of these small to medium-sized

insectivore A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects. The first vertebrate insectivores were ...

s are found on the island.

Rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...

s are poorly represented on the island with only a handful of native species, all belonging to the subfamily

Nesomyinae The Malagasy rodents are the sole members of the subfamily Nesomyinae. These animals are the only native rodents of Madagascar, come in many shapes and sizes, and occupy a wide variety of ecological niches. There are nesomyines that resemble ge ...

. They include the large, endangered

Malagasy giant rat The Malagasy giant rat (''Hypogeomys antimena''), also known as the votsotsa or votsovotsa, is a nesomyid rodent found only in the Menabe region of Madagascar. It is an endangered species due to habitat loss, slow reproduction, and limited ran ...

. Due to their ability to fly, a greater variety of bats have reached the island. However, only about a third of these are endemic, a lower proportion than in other groups of land mammals. There are eight members of the

Carnivora Carnivora is a Clade, monophyletic order of Placentalia, placental mammals consisting of the most recent common ancestor of all felidae, cat-like and canidae, dog-like animals, and all descendants of that ancestor. Members of this group are f ...

on the island, all now classified in the endemic family

Eupleridae Eupleridae is a family of carnivorans endemic to Madagascar and comprising 10 known living species in seven genera, commonly known as euplerids, Malagasy mongooses or Malagasy carnivorans. The best known species is the fossa (''Cryptoproct ...

. The cat-like fossa is the largest of these.

Malagasy living mammals

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 Madagas ...

s: As of 2008, there are officially 99 species and subspecies of lemur, 39 of which have been described by zoologists between 2000 and 2008. Of the 51 species that were evaluated by the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

that year, 43 were categorized as threatened to some degree, with six species being classified as " Critically Endangered", the designation of highest risk. The evaluations became considerably more pessimistic in 2012.

: Primary among these malagasy

carnivore A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other s ...

s is the fossa (''Cryptoprocta ferox''), an animal similar in appearance to a feline. Other Malagasy carnivores include the

fanaloka The Malagasy or striped civet (''Fossa fossana''), also known as the fanaloka (Malagasy, ) or jabady, is an euplerid endemic to Madagascar. It is the only species in genus ''Fossa''. The Malagasy civet is a small mammal, about long excluding ...

(''Fossa fossana''), which, despite its scientific name, should not be confused with the fossa. Nor should it be confused with the very similarly named falanouc (''Eupleres goudotii''), also known as the Malagasy small-toothed civet. Five species of mongoose are also found in Madagascar, as is the

small Indian civet The small Indian civet (''Viverricula indica'') is a civet native to South and Southeast Asia. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List because of its widespread distribution, widespread habitat use and healthy populations living in agr ...

, one of the carnivores believed to have been introduced to the island. Tenrecidae: Three species of tenrec (the

otter shrew Potamogalidae is the family of "otter shrews", a group of semiaquatic riverine afrotherian mammals indigenous to sub-Saharan Africa. They are most closely related to the tenrecs of Madagascar, from which they are thought to have split about 47� ...

s) are found on the African mainland. The majority of tenrecs, around 30 species, are found in Madagascar. They have radiated into many different niches. For example,

web-footed tenrec The web-footed tenrec, Malagasy otter shrew, or aquatic tenrec (''Microgale mergulus'') is the only known semiaquatic tenrec (the related African otter shrews have similar habits), and is found in eastern Madagascar, especially in and around Rano ...

s ('' Limnogale mergulus'') resemble river otters in appearance and behaviour. The

lesser hedgehog tenrec The lesser hedgehog tenrec (''Echinops telfairi'') is a species of mammal in the family Tenrecidae. It is the only species in the genus ''Echinops'' and is named in honour of Charles Telfair. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitats a ...

('' Echinops telfairi'') resembles its namesake the hedgehog.

s: About 30 species of indigenous rodent are known from Madagascar, three of which are now extinct. They are all members of the

muroid The Muroidea are a large superfamily of rodents, including mice, rats, voles, hamsters, lemmings, gerbils, and many other relatives. Although the Muroidea originated in Eurasia, they occupy a vast variety of habitats on every continent excep ...

subfamily

. These have also radiated into various niches, with

vole Voles are small rodents that are relatives of lemmings and hamsters, but with a stouter body; a longer, hairy tail; a slightly rounder head; smaller eyes and ears; and differently formed molars (high-crowned with angular cusps instead of lo ...

-like forms, arboreal mice,

fossorial A fossorial () animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily, but not solely, underground. Some examples are badgers, naked mole-rats, clams, meerkats, and mole salamanders, as well as many beetles, wasps, and bees. Prehistoric evid ...

varieties, and rabbit-like forms. Bats: Approximately 69 species of bat are known from Madagascar, more than half of which are endemic to the island (see

List of bats of Madagascar Bats are one of the major components of the indigenous mammalian fauna of Madagascar, in addition to tenrecs, lemurs, euplerid carnivores, and nesomyine rodents. Forty-six bat species have so far been recorded on Madagascar, of which thirty-si ...

Malagasy extinct mammals

'' Plesiorycteropus'' (''P. germainepetterae'', ''P. madagascariensis''): One or two species of mysterious aardvark-like tenrec relatives that may have gone extinct about 1000 years ago.

Giant lemur Subfossil lemurs are lemurs from Madagascar that are represented by recent (subfossil) remains dating from nearly 26,000 years ago to approximately 560 years ago (from the late Pleistocene until the Holocene). They include both extant ...

s: At least 17 species of lemur have become extinct since man arrived on Madagascar, all of which were larger than the surviving lemur species. They include the

giant aye-aye The giant aye-aye (''Daubentonia robusta'') is an extinct relative of the aye-aye, the only other species in the genus ''Daubentonia''. It lived in Madagascar, appears to have disappeared less than 1,000 years ago, is entirely unknown in life, an ...

, three to five times as heavy as the extant species. ''

Megaladapis ''Megaladapis'' ("Great ''Adapis''" from Ancient Greek μεγαλος (megalos), "great, big" + Modern Latin ''Adapis'', "'' Adapis''"), informally known as the koala lemur, was a genus belonging to the family Megaladapidae, consisting of thre ...

'', which had three species, reached the size of orangutans. The eight sloth lemurs show

evolutionary convergence Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different periods or epochs in time. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last com ...

with the

South American South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

sloth Sloths are a group of Neotropical xenarthran mammals constituting the suborder Folivora, including the extant arboreal tree sloths and extinct terrestrial ground sloths. Noted for their slowness of movement, tree sloths spend most of their l ...

s; '' Palaeopropithecus'' was chimpanzee-sized, while ''

Archaeoindris ''Archaeoindris fontoynontii'' is an extinct giant lemur and the largest primate known to have evolved on Madagascar, comparable in size to a male gorilla. It belonged to a family of extinct lemurs known as " sloth lemurs" (Palaeopropithecidae ...

'' grew to over 200 kg, more massive than a silverback gorilla.

Giant fossa ''Cryptoprocta spelea'', also known as the giant fossa, is an extinct species of carnivore from Madagascar in the family Eupleridae which is most closely related to the mongooses and includes all Malagasy carnivorans. It was first described in 19 ...

(''Cryptoprocta spelea''): The fossil record of Madagascar has yielded the remains of a recently extinct fossa which was about a quarter larger than the living species, making it close to the size of an

ocelot The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized. It is native to the southwe ...

. This species was believed to have preyed upon the larger lemurs that inhabited Madagascar until the island was settled by man. Malagasy hippopotamuses: There are thought to have been three species of dwarf or pygmy hippopotamus in Madagascar, the last of which died out no earlier than 1,000 years ago, probably as a result of human settlement of the island. Leptosomusdiscolorcrop

Birds

About 280 species of bird have been recorded on Madagascar and about 200 of these breed. Although these are relatively low numbers for a large tropical island, there is a high degree of endemism. Over 100 bird species are endemic and 49 of these are

restricted-range endemic An Endemic Bird Area (EBA) is an area of land identified by BirdLife International as being important for habitat-based bird conservation because it contains the habitats of restricted-range bird species (''see below for definition''), which are th ...

s with a range of less than 50,000 km². There are five bird families unique to Madagascar or shared only with the

Comoro Islands The Comoro Islands or Comoros ( Shikomori ''Komori''; ar, جزر القمر , ''Juzur al-qamar''; french: Les Comores) form an archipelago of volcanic islands situated off the southeastern coast of Africa, to the east of Mozambique and nort ...

: the

mesite The mesites (Mesitornithidae) are a family of birds that are part of a clade (Columbimorphae) that include Columbiformes and Pterocliformes. They are smallish flightless or near flightless birds endemic to Madagascar. They are the only family wit ...

s, the

ground-roller The ground rollers are a small family of non-migratory near-passerine birds restricted to Madagascar. They are related to the kingfishers, bee-eaters and rollers. They most resemble the latter group, and are sometimes considered a sub-family ...

s, the cuckoo-roller, the asities and the

vanga The family Vangidae (from ''vanga'', Malagasy for the hook-billed vanga, ''Vanga curvirostris'') comprises a group of often shrike-like medium-sized birds distributed from Asia to Africa, including the vangas of Madagascar to which the family ...

s. In addition, recent studies suggest that several songbirds should be grouped together in a new endemic family: the

Malagasy warbler The Tetrakas and allies are a newly validated family of songbirds. They were formally named Bernieridae in 2010. The family currently consists of eleven species (in eight genera) of small forest birds. These birds are all endemic to Madagascar. ...

Elephant bird Elephant birds are members of the extinct ratite family Aepyornithidae, made up of flightless birds that once lived on the island of Madagascar. They are thought to have become extinct around 1000-1200 CE, probably as a result of human activity. ...

s (e.g. ''

Aepyornis maximus ''Aepyornis'' is a genus of aepyornithid, one of three genera of ratite birds endemic to Madagascar until their extinction sometime around 1000 CE. The species ''A. maximus'' weighed up to , and until recently was regarded as the largest known ...

'') were flightless

ratite A ratite () is any of a diverse group of flightless, large, long-necked, and long-legged birds of the infraclass Palaeognathae. Kiwi, the exception, are much smaller and shorter-legged and are the only nocturnal extant ratites. The systematics ...

s up to over three metres tall and half a tonne in weight. Genetic studies have revealed that their closest living relatives are the kiwi of New Zealand, rather than the nearby ostriches of Africa; i.e., their presence on the island appears to be due to long-range dispersal rather than

vicariance Allopatric speciation () – also referred to as geographic speciation, vicariant speciation, or its earlier name the dumbbell model – is a mode of speciation that occurs when biological populations become geographically isolated from ...

. They are thought to have become extinct within the last millennium, as a result of human activity. Other endemic birds that have disappeared since human settlement of the island include the Malagasy lapwing and

Malagasy shelduck The Malagasy shelduck (''Alopochen sirabensis''), also known as the Sirabe shelduck, is an extinct species of waterfowl in the shelduck subfamily, described from Late Pleistocene fossils found at Antsirabe in central Madagascar. It is relate ...

Reptiles

Relatively few families and genera of reptile have reached Madagascar but they have diversified into more than 260 species, with over 90% of these being endemic. The

chameleon 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 ...

s are very well represented with two-thirds of the world's species found there. The other lizard groups on Madagascar are the

gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from . Geckos a ...

es,

skink Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae, a family in the infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species across 100 different taxonomic genera, the family Scincidae is one of the most diverse families of lizards. ...

s, girdle-tailed lizards and

iguanid The Iguanidae is a family of lizards composed of the iguanas, chuckwallas, and their prehistoric relatives, including the widespread green iguana. Taxonomy Iguanidae is thought to be the sister group to the collared lizards (family Crotaph ...

s. Over 60 different snakes occur on the island; none of these are harmful to man. There are six land

tortoise Tortoises () are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin: ''tortoise''). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like oth ...

s species, five endemics and one introduced species (

Bell's hinge-back tortoise Bell's hinge-back tortoise (''Kinixys belliana''), also known commonly as Bell's eastern hinged tortoise, is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to central Africa. It has the hinge that characterizes all tort ...

). Land based turtles include the

African helmeted turtle The African helmeted turtle (''Pelomedusa subrufa''), also known commonly as the marsh terrapin, the crocodile turtle, or in the pet trade as the African side-necked turtle, is a species of omnivorous side-necked terrapin in the family Pelomedus ...

, yellow-bellied mud turtle and

East African black mud turtle The East African black mud turtle (''Pelusios subniger''), also known as the Pan terrapin, is a species of turtle in the family Pelomedusidae, native to eastern and southeastern Africa. Description The East African black mud turtle has a smooth, ...

. The shores are used for nesting by the

loggerhead sea turtle The loggerhead sea turtle (''Caretta caretta'') is a species of oceanic turtle distributed throughout the world. It is a marine reptile, belonging to the family Cheloniidae. The average loggerhead measures around in carapace length when fully ...

green sea turtle The green sea turtle (''Chelonia mydas''), also known as the green turtle, black (sea) turtle or Pacific green turtle, is a species of large sea turtle of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus ''Chelonia''. Its range exten ...

and

hawksbill sea turtle The hawksbill sea turtle (''Eretmochelys imbricata'') is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Eretmochelys''. The species has a global distribution, that is large ...

while the

olive ridley sea turtle The olive ridley sea turtle (''Lepidochelys olivacea''), also known commonly as the Pacific ridley sea turtle, is a species of turtle in the family Cheloniidae. The species is the second-smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in ...

forages here. Madagascar's largest reptile is the

Nile crocodile The Nile crocodile (''Crocodylus niloticus'') is a large crocodilian native to freshwater habitats in Africa, where it is present in 26 countries. It is widely distributed throughout sub-Saharan Africa, occurring mostly in the central, eastern, ...

which has become very rare due to hunting for its skin. Endemic

voay ''Voay'' is an extinct genus of crocodile from Madagascar that lived during the Late Pleistocene to Holocene, containing only one species, ''V. robustus''. Numerous subfossils have been found, including complete skulls, noted for their distinctiv ...

(''V. robustus'') became extinct. Madagascar is a stronghold for a wide diversity of

species of

s and is considered the radiation point for

day gecko ''Phelsuma'' is a large genus of geckos in the family Gekkonidae. Species in the genus ''Phelsuma'' are commonly referred to as day geckos. Some day geckos are seriously endangered and some are common, but all ''Phelsuma'' species are CITES App ...

s. The two genera of iguanas present have a basal relationship to other iguanas and are believed to have been present on the island since it separated from Africa. The Madagascar big-headed turtle, spider tortoise, flat-backed spider tortoise, radiated tortoise and

ploughshare tortoise The angonoka tortoise (''Astrochelys yniphora'') is a critically endangered species of tortoise severely threatened by poaching for the illegal pet trade. It is endemic to Madagascar. It is also known as the angonoka, ploughshare tortoise, Madag ...

are endangered species. *

Chameleon 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 ...

genera found in Madagascar: ''

Calumma ''Calumma'' is a genus of chameleons endemic and restricted to Madagascar. The species formerly named ''Calumma tigris'' was transferred to the genus '' Archaius'' by Townsend et al., when they found that it is more closely related to ''Rieppe ...

'', ''

Furcifer ''Furcifer'' is a genus of chameleons whose member species are mostly endemic to Madagascar, but ''F. cephalolepis'' and ''F. polleni'' are endemic to the Comoros. Additionally, ''F. pardalis'' has been introduced to Réunion and Mauritius, whil ...

'' and ''

Brookesia ''Brookesia'' is a genus of chameleons, endemic to Madagascar, that range from small to very small in size, and are known collectively as leaf chameleons (though this name also commonly is used for species in the genera ''Rieppeleon'' and ''Rham ...

'' *

Iguania Iguania is an infraorder of squamate reptiles that includes iguanas, chameleons, agamids, and New World lizards like anoles and phrynosomatids. Using morphological features as a guide to evolutionary relationships, the Iguania are believed ...

n (or

) lizard genera of Madagascar: ''

Chalarodon ''Chalarodon'' is a genus of Malagasy terrestrial iguanian lizard. It was considered a monotypic genus, until in 2015 a second species, '' Chalarodon steinkampi'', was recognised based on morphology and DNA sequence data. The common names of thi ...

'' and ''

Oplurus ''Oplurus'' is a genus of Malagasy iguanian lizards, most of which are rock-dwelling terrestrial species. The sister genus to ''Oplurus'' is ''Chalarodon'', which contains two species: '' Chalarodon madagascariensis'' and '' Chalarodon steink ...

Amphibians

There are more than 290

amphibian Amphibians are four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terrestrial, fossorial, arbo ...

species in Madagascar with new species being found regularly. Nearly all of these are endemic and the majority are restricted to

primary forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological feature ...

. Examples of well-known amphibian species found in Madagascar include

tomato frog Tomato frogs are any of the three species of genus ''Dyscophus'' (family Microhylidae): ''D. antongilii'', ''D. insularis'', or ''D. guineti''. ''Dyscophus'' is the only genus in subfamily Dyscophinae. They are endemic to Madagascar. The common ...

and golden mantella frog.

Freshwater fish

Madagascar has a rich freshwater fish fauna with a very high rate of

endemics Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

. The full diversity is unclear, as

new species A species description is a formal description of a newly discovered species, usually in the form of a scientific paper. Its purpose is to give a clear description of a new species of organism and explain how it differs from species that have be ...

are being described regularly and species may have disappeared before even being discovered; estimates suggest the island has between 135 and 150 native fish species that are restricted to freshwater (this number grows significantly if including widespread

euryhaline Euryhaline organisms are able to adapt to a wide range of salinities. An example of a euryhaline fish is the molly (''Poecilia sphenops'') which can live in fresh water, brackish water, or salt water. The green crab ('' Carcinus maenas'') is an ...

species).IUCN Freshwater Fish Specialist Group:
Madagascar.
'' Retrieved 29 June 2014. Among these are two families entirely restricted to Madagascar, the anchariid catfish and the

Madagascar rainbowfish Bedotiinae are a subfamily of the rainbowfish family Melanotaeniidae, commonly known as the Madagascar rainbowfish, Madagascan rainbowfish, or Malagasy rainbowfish due to their endemism to Madagascar. It includes two genera, ''Bedotia'' and ''Rhe ...

. Additionally, several genera are endemic to Madagascar, including

cichlid Cichlids are fish from the family Cichlidae in the order Cichliformes. Cichlids were traditionally classed in a suborder, the Labroidei, along with the wrasses ( Labridae), in the order Perciformes, but molecular studies have contradicted th ...

s (''

Katria ''Katria'' is a genus of freshwater fish in the cichlid family. It contains the single species ''Katria katria'', a vulnerable species from the Mangoro and Nosivolo Rivers in east-central Madagascar, that was formerly included in the genus '' ...

'', ''

Oxylapia ''Oxylapia'' is a genus of freshwater fish in the family Cichlidae. It contains the single species ''Oxylapia polli'', known locally as the songatana. It is an endangered species, endemic to the Marolambo Rapids in the Nosivolo River (a tribut ...

'', ''

Paratilapia ''Paratilapia'' is a genus of cichlids generally restricted to Madagascar. These are large, dark cichlids densely covered in light spots. An additional very poorly known species from the Congo River basin in mainland Africa is sometimes also plac ...

'', '' Paretroplus'', ''

Ptychochromis ''Ptychochromis'' is a genus of cichlids endemic to rivers and lakes in Madagascar. One species ('' P. grandidieri'') can also be seen in brackish water.Stiassny, M.L.J. & Sparks, J.S. (2006): Phylogeny and Taxonomic Revision of the Endemic Malag ...

'' and ''

Ptychochromoides ''Ptychochromoides'' is a genus of cichlids endemic to Madagascar. Of the three described species, two are critically endangered and one was considered extinct until rediscovered in late 2010.Toronto Zoo (2010). Mad Fishes 2010 – Fish conserva ...

''), round herrings ('' Sauvagella'' and ''

Spratellomorpha The two-finned round herring (''Spratellomorpha bianalis'') is a species of fish in the family Clupeidae. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitat is river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing ...

''),

Old World silverside The Old World silversides are a family, Atherinidae, of fish in the order Atheriniformes. Atherinidae are abundant and considered bony fish (teleost) that are widespread globally, living in rivers, estuaries, and coastal waters. They occur worl ...

('' Teramulus''), sleeper gobies ('' Ratsirakia'' and the

troglobitic A troglobite (or, formally, troglobiont) is an animal species, or population of a species, strictly bound to underground habitats, such as caves. These are separate from species that mainly live in above-ground habitats but are also able to live u ...

Typhleotris ''Typhleotris'' is a genus of cavefish that are endemic to caves in southwestern Madagascar. Although traditionally considered to belong to the family Eleotridae, studies show that they represent a distinct and far-separated lineage together wit ...

''), and aplocheilid killifish (''

Pachypanchax ''Pachypanchax'' is a genus of aplocheilid killifishes native to freshwater in Madagascar, with one species (''P. playfairii'') known from Seychelles. Species The currently recognized species in this genus are: * '' Pachypanchax arnoulti'' L ...

'' – strictly speaking near-endemic, as there is a single species from the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, ...

).FishBase:
List of Freshwater Fishes for Madagascar.
' Retrieved 29 June 2014. There are endemic species from other genera (notably ''

Ambassis ''Ambassis'' is a genus of fish in the family Ambassidae, the Asiatic glassfishes. They are found widely in the Indo-Pacific region, with species in fresh, brackish and coastal marine waters. This genus includes fish known commonly as glassies, ...

'', ''

Arius Arius (; grc-koi, Ἄρειος, ; 250 or 256 – 336) was a Cyrenaic presbyter, ascetic, and priest best known for the doctrine of Arianism. His teachings about the nature of the Godhead in Christianity, which emphasized God the Father's ...

'', ''

Eleotris ''Eleotris'' is a genus of fish in the family Eleotridae with a circumglobal distribution in tropical and subtropical regions. Species There are currently 27 recognized species in this genus: * '' Eleotris acanthopoma'' Bleeker, 1853 (Spiny ...

'', ''

Glossogobius ''Glossogobius'' is a genus of gobies native to fresh, brackish and marine waters from Africa to the coasts of the western Pacific Ocean. They are found in Madagascar, South Africa, Japan, Thailand, Australia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, the Philippin ...

'', '' Kuhlia'', ''

Mesopristes ''Mesopristes'' is a genus of fish in the family Terapontidae, the grunters. They are found in fresh, brackish and marine waters near the coast in the Indo-Pacific region. Species include:Froese, R. and D. Pauly, Eds''Mesopristes''.FishBase. 20 ...

'', '' Ophiocara'', ''

Pantanodon ''Pantanodon'' is a genus of poeciliid The Poeciliidae are a family of freshwater fishes of the order Cyprinodontiformes, the tooth-carps, and include well-known live-bearing aquarium fish, such as the guppy, molly, platy, and swordtail. T ...

'' and ''

Sicyopterus ''Sicyopterus'' is a genus of gobies native fresh waters from Madagascar to the Pacific islands. Species There are currently 37 recognized species in this genus: * '' Sicyopterus aiensis'' Keith, Watson & Marquet, 2004 (Creek Ai's goby) * '' ...

''), but these also have other species found elsewhere. The geographic history of Madagascar (long isolated, but part of

Gondwana Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final sta ...

) has resulted in unusual

biogeographic Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time. Organisms and biological communities often vary in a regular fashion along geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, ...

patterns, comparable to those seen in other animal and plant groups of the island. For example, the closest relatives of the Madagascar rainbowfish are the "true"

rainbowfish The rainbowfish or Melanotaeniidae is a family of small, colourful freshwater fish found in northern and eastern Australia, New Guinea (including islands in Cenderawasih Bay and Raja Ampat Islands in Indonesia), Sulawesi and Madagascar. The la ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torres ...

and Australia, while the killifish ''Pachypanchax'' and the cichlids ''Paretroplus'' have their closest relatives in South Asia. The freshwater fish fauna in Madagascar has declined drastically due to habitat loss (pollution,

siltation Siltation, is water pollution caused by particulate Terrestrial ecoregion, terrestrial Clastic rock, clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay. It refers both to the increased concentration of suspended sediments and to the ...

following deforestation, damming and alike), overfishing and

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there ...

(

tilapia Tilapia ( ) is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the coelotilapine, coptodonine, heterotilapine, oreochromine, pelmatolapiine, and tilapiine tribes (formerly all were "Tilapiini"), with the economically most ...

Nile perch The Nile perch (''Lates niloticus''), also known as the African snook, Goliath perch, African barramundi , Goliath barramundi, Giant lates or the Victoria perch, is a species of freshwater fish in family Latidae of order Perciformes. It is wi ...

African arowana The African arowana or Nile arowana (''Heterotis niloticus'') is a species of bonytongue. Despite being called an "arowana", the African arowana is more closely related to arapaimas, the only other members in the subfamily Arapaiminae, than t ...

blotched snakehead The blotched snakehead (''Channa maculata'') is a species of snakehead. It is one of four species of the genus ''Channa ''Channa'' is a genus of predatory fish in the family Channidae, commonly known as snakeheads, native to freshwater habit ...

green swordtail The green swordtail (''Xiphophorus hellerii'') is a species of freshwater/brackish fish in family Poeciliidae of order Cyprinodontiformes. A live-bearer, it is closely related to the southern platyfish or 'platy' (''X. maculatus'') and can cros ...

and many other), with some suggesting that only a remnant of the natives can be saved. Among species already believed to be extinct are '' Pantanodon madagascariensis'' and '' Ptychochromis onilahy''.

Invertebrates

Oligochaeta

Thirty-eight species of earthworms are recorded in seven families, i.e. the Megascolecidae, Kynotidae (giant earthworms; endemic family with a single genus), Acanthodrilidae, Eudrilidae, Ocneodrilidae,

Octochaetidae Octochaetidae is a family of annelids The annelids (Annelida , from Latin ', "little ring"), also known as the segmented worms, are a large phylum, with over 22,000 extant species including ragworms, earthworms, and leeches. The species exi ...

and

Glossoscolecidae The Glossoscolecidae are a large family of earthworms (annelids) which has native representatives in South and Central America. The species '' Pontoscolex corethrurus'' has a circumtropical distribution. They are found mostly in forest, but one ...

. Among the species reported 59% are endemic.

Insects

Madagascar is home to huge variety of insects, the majority of which are endemic. Thousands of species are present in some groups such as the

beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

s and

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...

s. There are approximately 100,000 species of insects and counting in Madagascar. Distinctive species include the long-necked

giraffe weevil The giraffe weevil (''Trachelophorus giraffa'') is a weevil found in Southern Africa, India, south-east Asia. Description and ecology It derives its name from an extended neck, much like that of a giraffe. The giraffe weevil is sexually dimor ...

, the huge comet moth and the butterfly-like Madagascan sunset moth. About 80 species of

stick insect The Phasmatodea (also known as Phasmida, Phasmatoptera or Spectra) are an Order (biology), order of insects whose members are variously known as stick insects, stick-bugs, walking sticks, stick animals, or bug sticks. They are also occasionally ...

occur; the '' Achrioptera'' species are large and colourful while others are small and very well-camouflaged. Many of the island's

praying mantis Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families. The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. They ha ...

es are also well-camouflaged, mimicking dead leaves or bark. There are over 100

cockroach Cockroaches (or roaches) are a paraphyletic group of insects belonging to Blattodea, containing all members of the group except termites. About 30 cockroach species out of 4,600 are associated with human habitats. Some species are well-known ...

es, including the large

Madagascar hissing cockroach The Madagascar hissing cockroach (''Gromphadorhina portentosa''), also known as the hissing cockroach or simply hisser, is one of the largest species of cockroach, reaching at maturity. They are native to the island of Madagascar, which is off ...

. The

mosquitoes Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small Diptera, flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning "gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish ...

of Madagascar include 235 species, among which 138 (59%) are endemic and 64 (27%) have a known medical or veterinary interest because they can transmit diseases.

Beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

s: Various species of beetles. For example, various

tiger beetle Tiger beetles are a family of beetles, Cicindelidae, known for their aggressive predatory habits and running speed. The fastest known species of tiger beetle, ''Rivacindela hudsoni'', can run at a speed of , or about 125 body lengths per second. ...

s (Cicindelidae): 109 species from genus '' Pogonostoma'', 65 species from genus '' Physodeutera''. Madagascar is home to the smallest bee in the World, '' Liotrigona bitika'' (Brooks & Michener 1988) with a body length of less than 2 mm, and to several other species of

Meliponini Stingless bees, sometimes called stingless honey bees or simply meliponines, are a large group of bees (about 550 described species), comprising the tribe Meliponini (or subtribe Meliponina according to other authors). They belong in the family A ...

Spiders

Darwin's bark spider was discovered in 2009. It is famous for making the strongest and largest spider webs (ranging from 900 – 28000 square centimetres). The silk produced by this spider is twice as strong as other common spider silk.

Molluscs

Freshwater crustaceans

Madagascar is home to several endemic freshwater crustaceans, including 17 species of potamonautid crabs ('' Boreas'', '' Foza'', '' Hydrothelphusa'', '' Madagapotamon'', '' Malagasya'', ''

Marojejy Marojejy National Park () is a national park in the Sava region of northeastern Madagascar. It covers and is centered on the Marojejy Massif, a mountain chain that rises to an elevation of . Access to the area around the massif was restrict ...

'' and '' Skelosophusa''), 7 species of parastacid crayfish (''

Astacoides ''Astacoides'' is a genus of freshwater crayfish endemic to Madagascar. The first specimens were brought to Europe in 1839, and seven species are now recognised, most of which are considered as threatened on the IUCN Red List. They are large ...

''), and atyid shrimp.Jones; Andriahajaina; Hockley; Crandall; and Roavohangimalala (2007). ''The ecology and conservation status of Madagascar's endemic freshwater crayfish (Parastacidae; Astacoides).'' Freshwater Biology 52(9): 1820–1833.

Marine life

Balaenoptera omurai, Madagascar - Royal Society Open Science 1

The seas around Madagascar host a high diversity of wildlife, including invertebrates. There is a still a large area of

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 severa ...

swamp around the coast, particularly in the west, and there are extensive

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of Colony (biology), colonies of coral polyp (zoology), polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, wh ...

s around the island. Thousands of fish species occur, including the rare

coelacanth The coelacanths ( ) are fish belonging to the order Actinistia that includes two extant species in the genus ''Latimeria'': the West Indian Ocean coelacanth (''Latimeria chalumnae''), primarily found near the Comoro Islands off the east coast ...

. Four species of

sea turtle Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhe ...

breed on the beaches, but many are taken for food by local people. For whales,

humpback whale 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 hu ...

s breed off the south-western coasts such as at

Île Sainte-Marie Nosy Boraha , previously known as Sainte-Marie, main town Ambodifotatra, is an island off the east coast of Madagascar. The island forms an administrative district within Analanjirofo Region, and covers an area of 222 km2. It has a popul ...

, Omura's whales notably around Nosy Be,

pygmy blue whale The pygmy blue whale (''Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda'') is a subspecies of the blue whale (''Balaenoptera musculus'') found in the Indian Ocean and the southern Pacific Ocean. Reaching lengths of up to 24 metres (79 ft) it is sma ...

s on the Madagascar Plateau, and

southern right whale The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20 ...

s slowly increasing along Malagasy coasts.

Malagasy faunal names

Fish

Selected Malagasy fish names: *gogo: ''

'' spp. *mahalogy: ''

Caesio ''Caesio'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fish, fusiliers belonging to the family Caesionidae. They are native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean, although one species has invaded the eastern Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Can ...

'' spp. *tsenaby: '' Cheilio inermis'' *lemeleme: '' Coris formosa'' *lanora: '' Elagatis bipinnulata'' *alovo: ''

Epinephelus fasciatus The blacktip grouper (''Epinephelus fasciatus''), also known as the redbanded grouper, blacktipped cod, black-tipped rockcod, footballer cod, red-barred cod, red-barred rockcod, scarlet rock-cod or weathered rock-cod, is a species of marine ray-fi ...

'', '' Epinephelus coeruleopunctatus'' *angoa, vohy: '' Euthynnus affinis'' *tserakantsiva: '' Fistularia petimba'' *ambariake: '' Gerres oyena'' *soavahindriaka: '' Hippocampus cf. borboniensis'' *ndwaro: ''

Istiophorus platypterus The Indo-Pacific sailfish (''Istiophorus platypterus'') is a sailfish native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans and is naturalized in the Atlantic where it has entered the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal as a Lessepsian migrant. It is da ...

'' *fiambondis (?): ''

Labroides dimidiatus The bluestreak cleaner wrasse, ''Labroides dimidiatus'', is one of several species of cleaner wrasses found on coral reefs from East Africa, Eastern Africa and the Red Sea to French Polynesia. Like other cleaner wrasses, it eats parasites and dea ...

'' *tapaporoha: '' Lethrinus harak'' *ambitsy: '' Lethrinus nebulosus'' *romanjia: '' Lethrinus variegatus'' *tsivaravana: '' Lutjanus bohar'' *amposama: '' Lutjanus fulviflamma'' *fiamasika: '' Lutjanus kasmira'' *ndwaro: '' Makaira indica'' *kipela, talatala: '' Monodactylus argenteus'' *amgelika: '' Monotaxis grandoculis'' *dangiara, filao papango: ''

Platax orbicularis The orbicular batfish (''Platax orbicularis''), also known as the circular batfish, orbiculate batfish, round batfish, or orbic batfish is a popular aquarium fish which occurs naturally in the tropical waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The ...

'' *fiandolo, lafalovo: ''

Plotosus lineatus ''Plotosus lineatus'', common name striped eel catfish, is a species of eeltail catfishes belonging to the family Plotosidae. Description ''Plotosus lineatus'' can reach a maximum length of 32 cm (13 in). The body is brown with cream ...

'' *bodoloha: '' Pseudanthias squamipinnis'' *lemilemy: '' Pseudochromis dutoiti'' *sabonto: '' Rastrelliger kanagurta'' *soroboa: ''

Rhynchobatus djiddensis The giant guitarfish (''Rhynchobatus djiddensis''), also known as the whitespotted wedgefish, is a large species of guitarfish in the family Rhinidae. It is restricted to the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, and western Indian Ocean, but was formerly con ...

'' *maro taobana: ''

Sardinella albella The white sardinella (''Sardinella albella''), also known as deep-bodied sardine, perforated-scale sardine or short-bodied sardine, is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus ''Sardinella''. It is an important food fish, which can be feed as dr ...

'' *lamatra, talafeta: ''

Scomberomorus commerson The narrow-barred Spanish mackerel (''Scomberomorus commerson'') is a mackerel of the family Scombridae found in a wide-ranging area in Southeast Asia, but as far west as the east coast of Africa and from the Middle East and along the northern ...

'' *lamatra: '' Scomberomorus plurilineatus'' *akihoviko: ''

Sphyrna ''Sphyrna'' (from the Greek word σφῦρα, "hammer") is a genus of hammerhead sharks with a cosmopolitan distribution in the world's oceans. Members of ''Sphyrna'' have a tendency to inhabit coastal waters along the intertidal zone rather th ...

'' spp. *drihy, tsarabora: ''

Terapon jarbua ''Terapon jarbua'', the jarbua terapon, crescent grunter, crescent banded grunter, crescent perch, spiky trumpeter, thornfish or tiger perch, is a species of ray-finned fish, a grunter of the family Terapontidae. It occurs in the Indo-Pacific. ...

'' *lemeleme: ''

Thalassoma hebraicum The goldbar wrasse (''Thalassoma hebraicum'') is a species of wrasse native to the western Indian Ocean, where it inhabits reef environments at depths from . This species can grow to in total length. It is a target of local traditional fisher ...

'' *sampramale, vivano: '' Variola louti'' *fiam'akoho: '' Zanclus cornutus''

Mammals

Extinct megafauna

;Birds *Vorompatra: ''

Aepyornis ''Aepyornis'' is a genus of aepyornithid, one of three genera of ratite birds endemic to Madagascar until their extinction sometime around 1000 CE. The species ''A. maximus'' weighed up to , and until recently was regarded as the largest known ...

'' ;Lemurs *Tratratratra, tretretretre: probably '' Palaeopropithecus'' (a type of sloth lemur) *Tokandia: probably ''

'' (koala lemur) *Kidoky: ''

Hadropithecus ''Hadropithecus'' ("bulky ape" from Greek ἁδρός (hadros), "bulky, large" + πίθηκος (pithekos), "ape") is a medium-sized, extinct genus of lemur, or strepsirrhine primate, from Madagascar that includes a single species, ''Hadrop ...

'' or ''

Archaeolemur ''Archaeolemur'' ("ancient lemur" from Ancient Greek From Ancient Greek ἀρχαῖος (arkhaîos), "Ancient" + Modern Latin lemur, "lemur") is an extinct genus of subfossil lemurs known from the Holocene epoch of Madagascar. ''Archaeolemur'' i ...

'' (monkey lemurs, baboon lemurs) ;Others *Kilopilopitsofy, tsomgomby, railalomena: Malagasy hippopotamus *Antamba: ''

Cryptoprocta spelea ''Cryptoprocta spelea'', also known as the giant fossa, is an extinct species of carnivore from Madagascar in the family Eupleridae which is most closely related to the mongooses and includes all Malagasy carnivorans. It was first described in ...

'' or similar

Habitat loss

Slash and Burn Agriculture, Morondava, Madagascar

Most of Madagascar's habitats are in danger; they are being threatened by today's demands and growing needs. Environmental damage has been especially severe for humid forests.

Fauna and Flora International Fauna & Flora International (FFI) is an international conservation charity and non-governmental organization dedicated to protecting the planet's threatened wildlife and habitats. Founded in 1903, it is the world's oldest international conser ...

, abbreviated as FFI is one of the organizations that supports Madagascar's habitats.

In popular culture

* As a part of conservation efforts, the Wildlife Conservation Society has recently opened a Madagascar! exhibit at the Bronx Zoo. * The 2005 animated film ''

'' featured a number of animals of Madagascar as cartoon characters.

References

External links

Large database of local names of fauna of Madagascar with English and scientific namesMoravec J. (2010): Tiger Beetles of the Madagascan Region (Madagascar, Seychelles, Comoros, Mascarenes, and other islands) Taxonomic revision of the 17 genera occurring in the region (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae),430 pp.Madagascar and other Islands: Human Settlers Invade ParadiseNew York Academy of Sciences Podcast
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fauna Of Madagascar

Mammals

Malagasy living mammals

Malagasy extinct mammals

Birds

Reptiles

Amphibians

Freshwater fish

Invertebrates

Oligochaeta

Insects

Spiders

Molluscs

Freshwater crustaceans

Marine life

Malagasy faunal names

Fish

Mammals

Extinct megafauna

Habitat loss

In popular culture

See also

References

External links