Madagascar November 2015

[Hoy]

Thanks Steve, and thank you for the names.

I have not had time to look up the names yet. We spotted quite a few chameleons and other reptiles, also at night, but they were difficult to photograph close. We visited a kind of "zoo" adjacent to a National Park where they kept some specimens to demonstrate for visitors and also to rescue them. They were brought there by locals as small hatchlings or eggs and set free when big enough.

[Hoy]

Some  beautiful scenery - and I do like the animals.   All so very smartly dressed!

Here's one especially for you, Maggi:

[Steve Garvie]

I can't help with the plants Trond but the chameleons are familiar (though I've never been to Madagascar).
Your colourful guy of a few posts ago is actually a gal -a heavily gravid female Carpet Chameleon. The eggs are just visible through her flanks and the bold colours are to discourage amorous males.
Nice image of a red phase Panther male and the headshot is of a male Parson's Chameleon -presumably taken near Andasibe or thereabouts on the east of the island (??).

[Robert]

Trond,

The landscape in Madagascar is very different from anything that I am familiar with.

Are the climatic conditions in Madagascar always some variation of Wet/Dry Tropical/sub-tropical? Or maybe something more temperate at the highest elevations? Did your visit include hiking to some of the highest peaks or into high elevation areas that might be somewhat temperate?

I guess we will all find out. 

The natural landscape is very beautiful and intriguing, the plants for the most part foreign. I liked the brightly colored Euphorbia.

[Hoy]

I can't help with the plants Trond but the chameleons are familiar (though I've never been to Madagascar).
Your colourful guy of a few posts ago is actually a gal -a heavily gravid female Carpet Chameleon. The eggs are just visible through her flanks and the bold colours are to discourage amorous males.
Nice image of a red phase Panther male and the headshot is of a male Parson's Chameleon -presumably taken near Andasibe or thereabouts on the east of the island (??).

You are right. Most of the close-ups are taken in a place named Pereira's reserve on the road to Andasibe.

[Hoy]

Trond,

The landscape in Madagascar is very different from anything that I am familiar with.

Are the climatic conditions in Madagascar always some variation of Wet/Dry Tropical/sub-tropical? Or maybe something more temperate at the highest elevations? Did your visit include hiking to some of the highest peaks or into high elevation areas that might be somewhat temperate?

I guess we will all find out. 

The natural landscape is very beautiful and intriguing, the plants for the most part foreign. I liked the brightly colored Euphorbia.

Robert,

As far as I know you describe the climate correctly, and of course it is colder higher up in the mountains with occasional frost. The western part of the island is also much drier than the eastern, and it is driest in the south.
 
We experienced a hailstorm when we were at 1450m when we had come down from the summit of Pic Boby.

The colourful Euphorbia is sometimes sold as a potplant here.

[Hoy]

The sandstone plateau (Isalo) is strongly weathered and criss crossed by ravines and canyons. It is usually water all year at the bottom of the canyons and a lush plantlife.




Catharanthus ovalis, endemic to Madagascar.






Down in a ravine. It was very exciting to descend from the dry sunbathed plateau and down in the shaded and moist ravines.




We took a bath here!

[Hoy]

Some places the vertical cliffs were wet from water trickling out of the sandstone. Here was several special plants growing, like this Utricularia (possibly U. livida- about 20 species are described from Madagascar).






Drosera (madagascariensis? - 5 species here)




And also at least two different clubmoss species of about 25.

[Lvandelft]

Sorry - unknown.

Hi, firstly I enjoy your pictures from Madagascar, must be beautiful to see all these places. I'm afraid I'll have to do it with your pictures shown here. Thanks for that.
The plant on the second pic is probably Grewia occidentalis. It is sometimes seen in Gardencenters here and I've seen some big plants in pots in a friends garden. I have a young plant which is easy flowering and keep it inside during winter. It looses all the leaves but in spring it will thrive again.

[Hoy]

Hi Luit, you are right, at least it is a Grewia (I should have remembered that, have seen it once before). And maybe it is G. occidentalis but the foliage doesn't fit quite. More than 60 species of Grewia are known from Madagascar and some are still undescribed!

Grewia sp.

[Hoy]

Although we had been down in canyons before and seen many of the same plants quite a few were new. Unfortunately not all pictures turned out to be as good as they should








Another Oxalis.




Bamboo

[johnw]

Trond - Enjoying Madagascar immensely.  Did you by chance have a name for the bamboo?  I presume not a Berg bamboo.......

john

[Hoy]

Think we have seen this Malvaceae before - or a close relative. The colour was a bit different as was the shape of the petals.




We also spotted several Lobelia sp, most were tine weeds in the meadows and rice fields, but this one was a shrub. 28 species.




The locals. We had seen lemurs before but only high up in the canopy. Here they were accustomed to people and came to get food when we had lunch.




Brown lemur.




Ring-tailed lemur.

[Hoy]

Trond - Enjoying Madagascar immensely.  Did you by chance have a name for the bamboo?  I presume not a Berg bamboo.......

john

Hi John.  Sorry, no name except I know it is 7 species of Aruninaria there and possibly some other genera as well. We did see at least 3 different species. Some were relly big!

[Hoy]

On the road again! Approaching the granite mountains of Andringitra Massif.




The quality of the road to Andringitra National Park wasn't the best.




We had to cross several bridges.






This Lantana aculeata grows in abundance along the road.