Madagascar Adventure: Images from Afar

Just before COVID, the British journal New Scientist offered a tour to Madagascar, and I immediately placed a deposit. More than 20 years ago, I had attended a talk on Madagascar, which piqued my interest but also only offered a bleak interpretation of its conservation. (For a fuller discussion, see my article titled, “A Lesson From the Eighth Continent?” that ran in the Oct. 13, 2022, issue of MJ.) After years of watching and waiting, I wanted to see Madagascar for myself and in fall of 2022, I was able to finally travel to this special place. 

Madagascar broke away from Pangea during the time of the dinosaurs and evolved its own unique life forms. From lemurs to chameleons to baobab trees – there are 150,000 species that live nowhere else. Ecotourism infrastructure is just beginning, and we were grateful to have skilled guides in this challenging island nation. We are also grateful to share a bit of what we saw here!