Any wildlife left? Re:BBC IndianOcean programme

Thankyou for all your helpful replies.

I watched the programme with interest as I have have just been

Simon did highlight the issues of mass deforestation and the use of land for mass agriculture, which i thought was commendable, but it did feel like he slightly condemned the whole country

he was only in the arid south remember and even then, there is loads to see wildlife wise. In the north and east in the rainforest, there is an abundance of flora and fauna in the national parks and also all over the country.

he highlighted very real issues but there's a shedload of wildlife, especially lemurs, in Madagascar.

(also that Berenty place is weird and for tour groups, there's me condemning now!)

Hi bensontiggar,

The program is probably right.
While travelling in Madagascar, I realized that the allure of it having the highest number of endemic wildlife is just that.
Many of the forests are no longer forests, and there aren't so many animals left in the forests.

I still enjoyed my trip to Madagascar very much.
The music is fantastic, the people are very friendly, and the street yogurt is delicious.

Programmes that suggest that there is hardly any wildlife left are extremely damaging to conservation efforts.

Certainly humans have degraded the environment to an enormous extent, but to ensure that the very substantial areas currently protected in national parks remain protected, it is essential for visitors to keep coming. The money they bring into the country convinces the local populatioins of the economic value of protected areas and the fauna and flora in them, and is an incentive to them not to encroach on these areas or poach the wildlife.

I've been spending on average two months a year in the country over the last several years visiting most of the national parks and working in one of them. Believe me, there is plenty for you to see!