Malagasy fauna - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The fauna
Fauna
Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...

of Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...

is a part of the wildlife of Madagascar

Wildlife of Madagascar

The wildlife of Madagascar is composed of its flora and fauna. The island has been isolated for about 70 million years. Because of this, a very high proportion of the plants and animals are endemic, occurring nowhere else in the world. Many species are related to those found in mainland Africa but...

.

Madagascar

Madagascar

The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...

has been an isolated island for about 70 HI million years, breaking away from Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

around 165 million years ago, then from India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

nearly 100 million years later. This isolation led to the development of a unique endemic fauna

Fauna

Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...

.

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

Convergent evolution describes the acquisition of the same biological trait in unrelated lineages.The wing is a classic example of convergent evolution in action. Although their last common ancestor did not have wings, both birds and bats do, and are capable of powered flight. The wings are...

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

Megafauna

In terrestrial zoology, megafauna are "giant", "very large" or "large" animals. The most common thresholds used are or...

.

Despite this, and massive deforestation, 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 five colonization events

Rafting event

Oceanic dispersal is a type of biological dispersal that occurs when organisms transfer from one land mass to another by way of a sea crossing on large clumps of floating vegetation. Such matted clumps of vegetation are often seen floating down major rivers in the tropics and washing out to sea,...

of terrestrial mammals from mainland Africa. They are the tenrecs, the lemur

Lemur

Lemurs are a clade of strepsirrhine primates endemic to the island of Madagascar. They are named after the lemures of Roman mythology due to the ghostly vocalizations, reflective eyes, and the nocturnal habits of some species...

s, the Malagasy carnivorans, the nesomyine rodents

Nesomyinae

The Malagasy rats and mice 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 gerbils, rats, mice, voles, and even rabbits...

, and the now-extinct bibymalagasians. The other mammalian colonizations are the amphibious hippopotamuses (now extinct) and bats.

Mammals

The lemur

Lemur

s are the best known of Madagascar's mammal

Mammal

Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...

s. In the absence of monkey

Monkey

A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...

s and other competitors, these primate

Primate

A primate is a mammal of the order Primates , which contains prosimians and simians. Primates arose from ancestors that lived in the trees of tropical forests; many primate characteristics represent adaptations to life in this challenging three-dimensional environment...

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

Insectivore

An insectivore is a type of carnivore with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures. An alternate term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of eating insects....

s are found on the island. Rodent

Rodent

Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....

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

Nesomyinae

. They include the large, endangered Malagasy giant rat

Malagasy Giant Rat

The Malagasy Giant Rat , also known as the Votsovotsa, is a nesomyid rodent found only in the Menabe region of Madagascar...

. Due to their ability to fly, a greater variety of bat

Bat

Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...

s 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

The diverse order Carnivora |Latin]] carō "flesh", + vorāre "to devour") includes over 260 species of placental mammals. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore" can refer to any meat-eating animal...

on the island, all now classified in the endemic family Eupleridae

Eupleridae

The family Eupleridae is a group of carnivorans endemic to Madagascar and comprising 10 known species in seven genera. Probably the best known species is the Fossa , in the subfamily Euplerinae...

. The cat-like fossa

Fossa (animal)

The fossa is a cat-like, carnivorous mammal that is endemic to Madagascar. It is a member of the Eupleridae, a family of carnivorans closely related to the mongoose family . Its classification has been controversial because its physical traits resemble those of cats, yet other traits suggest a...

is the largest of these.

Malagasy living mammals

Lemur
Lemur
Lemurs are a clade of strepsirrhine primates endemic to the island of Madagascar. They are named after the lemures of Roman mythology due to the ghostly vocalizations, reflective eyes, and the nocturnal habits of some species...

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. They are almost all classified as rare, vulnerable, or endangered.

Eupleridae
Eupleridae
The family Eupleridae is a group of carnivorans endemic to Madagascar and comprising 10 known species in seven genera. Probably the best known species is the Fossa , in the subfamily Euplerinae...

: Primary among these malagasy carnivore

Carnivore

A carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging...

s is the fossa

Fossa (animal)

(Cryptoprocta ferox), a type of civet despite its feline appearance. Other Malagasy carnivores include the fanaloka

Fanaloka

The Malagasy or striped civet , also known as the fanaloka , is a rare euplerid endemic to Madagascar....

(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

Falanouc

The Falanouc is a rare mongoose-like mammal endemic Malagasy euplerid .It is classified alongside its closest living relative, the Fanaloka, in the subfamily Euplerinae. The Falanouc has several peculiarities which merit its independent classification...

(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

Small Indian Civet

The Small Indian Civet or Rasse is a species of civet found across south and South-east Asia as well as in the Indonesian archipelago. The Assamese name Johamaal refers to its glandular odour similar to a scented rice variety called Joha...

, the only carnivore believed to have been introduced to the island.

Tenrecidae
Tenrecidae
Tenrecidae is a family of mammals found on Madagascar and parts of Africa. Tenrecs are widely diverse, resembling hedgehogs, shrews, opossums, mice and even otters, as a result of convergent evolution. They occupy aquatic, arboreal, terrestrial and fossorial environments...

: Three species of tenrec (the otter shrews) are found on the African mainland. The majority of tenrecs, around 30 species, are found in Madagascar. They have radiated into many different niches

Ecological niche

In ecology, a niche is a term describing the relational position of a species or population in its ecosystem to each other; e.g. a dolphin could potentially be in another ecological niche from one that travels in a different pod if the members of these pods utilize significantly different food...

. For example web-footed tenrec

Web-footed Tenrec

The Web-footed Tenrec, Otter Shrew, or Aquatic Tenrec is the only known semiaquatic Malagasy tenrec , and is found in eastern Madagascar, especially in and around Ranomafana National Park. It grows to between 25 and 39 cm, and was once thought to be extinct...

s (Limnogale mergulus) resemble river otters in appearance and behaviour. The Lesser Hedgehog Tenrec

Lesser Hedgehog Tenrec

The Lesser Hedgehog Tenrec is a species of mammal in the Tenrecidae family.It is the only species in the genus Echinops and is named in honour of Charles Telfair.-Distribution and habitat:It is endemic to Madagascar...

(Echinops telfairi) resembles its namesake the hedgehog.

Rodent
Rodent
Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....

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

Muroidea

Muroidea is a large superfamily of rodents. It includes hamsters, gerbils, true mice and rats, and many other relatives. They occupy a vast variety of habitats on every continent except Antarctica. Some authorities have placed all members of this group into a single family, Muridae, due to...

subfamily Nesomyinae

Nesomyinae

. These have also radiated into various niches, with vole

Vole

A vole is a small rodent resembling a mouse but with a stouter body, a shorter hairy tail, a slightly rounder head, smaller ears and eyes, and differently formed molars . There are approximately 155 species of voles. They are sometimes known as meadow mice or field mice in North America...

-like forms, arboreal mice, fossorial

Fossorial

A fossorial organism is one that is adapted to digging and life underground such as the badger, the naked mole rat, and the mole salamanders Ambystomatidae...

varieties, and rabbit

Rabbit

Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...

-like forms.

Bat
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...

s: Approximately 45 species of bat are known from Madagascar, more than half of which are endemic to the island (see List of bats of Madagascar).

Malagasy extinct mammals

Bibymalagasians
Plesiorycteropus
Plesiorycteropus, also known as the bibymalagasy or Malagasy aardvark, is a recently extinct eutherian mammalian genus from Madagascar. Upon its description in 1895, it was classified with the aardvark, but recent studies have found little evidence to link it to aardvarks or any other order of...

(Plesiorycteropus madagascariensis): One or two species of these enigmatic, aardvark

Aardvark

The aardvark is a medium-sized, burrowing, nocturnal mammal native to Africa...

-like insectivores may have gone extinct about 1000 years ago. They have been assigned their own order, Bibymalagasia.

Giant Lemurs: 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

Giant Aye-aye

The giant aye-aye 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, and is only known from subfossil remains.As of 2004, giant aye-aye remains consisted...

, three to five times as heavy as the extant species. Megaladapis
Megaladapis
Koala lemurs, genus Megaladapis, belong to the family Megaladapidae, consisting of three extinct species of lemurs that once inhabited the island of Madagascar. The largest measured between in length.-Appearance and habits:...

, which had three species, reached the size of orangutan

Orangutan

Orangutans are the only exclusively Asian genus of extant great ape. The largest living arboreal animals, they have proportionally longer arms than the other, more terrestrial, great apes. They are among the most intelligent primates and use a variety of sophisticated tools, also making sleeping...

s. The eight sloth lemurs show remarkable evolutionary convergence

Convergent evolution

with the South American sloth

Sloth

Sloths are the six species of medium-sized mammals belonging to the families Megalonychidae and Bradypodidae , part of the order Pilosa and therefore related to armadillos and anteaters, which sport a similar set of specialized claws.They are arboreal residents of the jungles of Central and South...

s; Palaeopropithecus was chimpanzee

Chimpanzee

Chimpanzee, sometimes colloquially chimp, is the common name for the two extant species of ape in the genus Pan. The Congo River forms the boundary between the native habitat of the two species:...

-sized, while Archaeoindris
Archaeoindris
Archaeoindris fontoynonti is an extinct species of Malagasy lemur that was the largest primate to evolve on Madagascar. It weighed about and measured around 1.5m in height, more than a silverback gorilla. Archaeoindris is one of eight known members of the Palaeopropithecinae subfamily...

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

Gorilla

Gorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...

.

Giant Fossa
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 1902, and in 1935 was recognized as a separate species...

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

Ocelot

The ocelot , pronounced /ˈɒsəˌlɒt/, also known as the dwarf leopard or McKenney's wildcat is a wild cat distributed over South and Central America and Mexico, but has been reported as far north as Texas and in Trinidad, in the Caribbean...

. This species was believed to have preyed upon the larger lemurs that inhabited Madagascar until the island was settled by man.

Malagasy Hippopotamus
Malagasy Hippopotamus
Several species of Malagasy Hippopotamus lived on the island of Madagascar but are now believed to be extinct. The animals were very similar to the extant Hippopotamus and Pygmy Hippopotamus...

es: 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.

Birds

About 280 species of bird

Bird

Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...

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

Comoro Islands

The Comoros Islands form an archipelago of volcanic islands situated off the south-east coast of Africa, to the east of Mozambique and north-west of Madagascar. They are divided between the sovereign state of Comoros and the French overseas department of Mayotte...

: the mesite

Mesite

The mesites are a family of birds of uncertain affinities. They are smallish, near flightless birds endemic to Madagascar. Generally brownish with paler undersides, they are of somewhat pheasant-like appearance and were initially placed with the Galliformes...

s, the ground-roller

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...

s, the cuckoo-roller

Cuckoo-roller

The Cuckoo Roller is the only bird in the family Leptosomatidae, which is usually considered to be within the order Coraciiformes, which also includes the kingfishers, bee-eaters and rollers. However, the position of this family is not very clear. Morphological evidence may suggest a placement...

, the asities

Asity

The asities, are a family, the Philepittidae, of small suboscine passerine birds. The family consists of four species in two genera endemic to Madagascar. They were thought to have been related to the pittas, hence the scientific name of the family, but a 1993 study suggested that they are actually...

and the vanga

Vanga

The vangas are a group of little-known small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to Madagascar and the Comoros. They are usually classified as the family Vangidae. There are about 22 species, depending on taxonomy...

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

Malagasy warbler

The Malagasy warblers are a newly validated clade of songbirds. They were formally named Bernieridae in 2010. The family consists of ten species of small forest birds and is endemic to Madagascar....

s.

Elephant Bird

Elephant bird

Elephant birds are an extinct family of flightless birds found only on the island of Madagascar and comprising the genera Aepyornis and Mullerornis.-Description:...

s (Aepyornis maximus): These enormous birds were over 3 metres tall and half a tonne in weight. They are thought to have become extinct within the last millennium, as a result of human activity, like the dodo

Dodo

The dodo was a flightless bird endemic to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. Related to pigeons and doves, it stood about a meter tall, weighing about , living on fruit, and nesting on the ground....

on the neighbouring island of Mauritius

Mauritius

Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...

Reptiles

Relatively few families and genera of reptile

Reptile

Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...

have reached Madagascar but they have diversified into more than 260 species, with over 90% of these being endemic. The chameleon

Chameleon

Chameleons are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of lizards. They are distinguished by their parrot-like zygodactylous feet, their separately mobile and stereoscopic eyes, their very long, highly modified, and rapidly extrudable tongues, their swaying gait, the possession by many of a...

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

Lizard

Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with nearly 3800 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica as well as most oceanic island chains...

groups on Madagascar are the gecko

Gecko

Geckos are lizards belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from 1.6 cm to 60 cm....

es, skink

Skink

Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae. Together with several other lizard families, including Lacertidae , they comprise the superfamily or infraorder Scincomorpha...

s, girdle-tailed lizard

Cordylidae

Cordylidae is a family of small to medium sized lizards that occur in southern and eastern Africa. They are commonly known as "Girdled", Spinytail lizards or Girdle-tail lizards. Girdled lizards are diurnal and insectivorous...

s and iguanids. Over 60 different snake

Snake

Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...

s occur on the island; none of these are harmful to man. There are six land tortoise

Tortoise

Tortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...

s species, five endemics and one introduced species (Bell's hinge-back tortoise and the subspecies Madagascan hinge-back tortoise). Land based turtles include the African helmeted turtle

African helmeted turtle

The African helmeted turtle or Marsh terrapin , is typically a rather small turtle with most individuals being less than 87.9 cm in carapace length, but one has been recorded with a carapace length of 132.5 cm. it has an black or brown carapace . The tops of the tail and limbs are a...

, yellow-bellied mud turtle, East African yellow-bellied mud turtle, East African black mud turtle

East African Black Mud Turtle

The East African black mud turtle is a species of turtle in the Pelomedusidae family, traditionally found in eastern and southeastern Africa, including Madagascar. Nonindigenous populations exist on Mauritius Island, Glorieues Îsles and Diego Garcia...

. The shores are used for nesting by the loggerhead sea turtle

Loggerhead sea turtle

The loggerhead sea turtle , or loggerhead, is an oceanic turtle distributed throughout the world. It is a marine reptile, belonging to the family Cheloniidae. The average loggerhead measures around long when fully grown, although larger specimens of up to have been discovered...

, green sea turtle

Green Sea Turtle

The Green sea turtle or green turtle is a large sea turtle of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus Chelonia. Its range extends throughout tropical and subtropical seas around the world, with two distinct populations in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...

and hawksbill sea turtle while the olive ridley sea turtle forages here. Madagascar's largest reptile is the Nile crocodile

Nile crocodile

The Nile crocodile or Common crocodile is an African crocodile which is common in Somalia, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Egypt, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Gabon, South Africa, Malawi, Sudan, Botswana, and Cameroon...

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

Madagascar is a stronghold for a wide diversity of endemic species of chameleon

Chameleon

s and is considered the radiation point for day geckos. The two genera of iguanas

Opluridae

The Opluridae, or Madagascan iguanas, are a family of moderately sized lizards native to Madagascar. There are seven species in two genera, with most of the species being in Oplurus. The family includes species that live amongst rocks, some that live in trees, and one that inhabits sand dunes...

present have a basal

Basal (phylogenetics)

In phylogenetics, a basal clade is the earliest clade to branch in a larger clade; it appears at the base of a cladogram.A basal group forms an outgroup to the rest of the clade, such as in the following example:...

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

Spider Tortoise

The Spider Tortoise is a species of turtle in the Testudinidae family.It is endemic to Madagascar and is one of only two species in the genus Pyxis.- Reference :...

, flat-backed spider tortoise

Flat-backed Spider Tortoise

The flat-backed spider tortoise, flat-shelled spider tortoise, or Madagascar flat-shelled tortoise is a species of turtle in the Testudinidae family.It is endemic to Madagascar.-Source:...

, radiated tortoise

Radiated Tortoise

The radiated tortoise is a species in the family Testudinidae. Although this species is native to and most abundant in southern Madagascar, it can be also be found in the rest of this island, and has been introduced to the islands of Réunion and Mauritius...

and ploughshare tortoise are endangered species.

Chameleon
Chameleon
Chameleons are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of lizards. They are distinguished by their parrot-like zygodactylous feet, their separately mobile and stereoscopic eyes, their very long, highly modified, and rapidly extrudable tongues, their swaying gait, the possession by many of a...

genera found in Madagascar: Calumma
Calumma
Calumma is a genus of chameleons where all species are endemic to Madagascar. Following CITES, it is now illegal to import any of the species from their native countries.-Classification of genus Calumma:* Calumma amber...

, Furcifer
Furcifer
Furcifer is a genus of chameleons whose members 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, while F. oustaleti has been introduced to near Nairobi in Kenya...

and Brookesia
Brookesia
Brookesia is a genus of chameleons found in Madagascar, that range from small to very small in size, and are known collectively as Leaf Chameleons . It includes the species considered to be the world's smallest chameleons, and are also among the smallest reptiles...
Iguania
Iguania
Iguania is the suborder of Squamata that contains the iguanas, chameleons, agamids, and "New World lizards" such as anoles and Phrynosomatidae...

n (or iguanid
Iguanidae
Iguanidae is a family of lizards, composed of iguanas and related species.-Classification of Iguanidae:Two different classification schemes have been used to define the structure of this family. These are the "traditional" classification and the classification presented by Frost et al. .Frost et...

) lizards of Madagascar
Opluridae
The Opluridae, or Madagascan iguanas, are a family of moderately sized lizards native to Madagascar. There are seven species in two genera, with most of the species being in Oplurus. The family includes species that live amongst rocks, some that live in trees, and one that inhabits sand dunes...

Amphibians

There are more than 150 amphibian

Amphibian

Amphibians , are a class of vertebrate animals including animals such as toads, frogs, caecilians, and salamanders. They are characterized as non-amniote ectothermic tetrapods...

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

Insects

Madagascar is home to huge variety of insect

Insect

Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...

s, the majority of which are endemic. Thousands of species are present in some groups such as the beetle

Beetle

Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...

s and moth

Moth

A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...

s. Distinctive species include the long-necked giraffe weevil

Giraffe weevil

The giraffe weevil is a weevil endemic to Madagascar. It derives its name from an extended neck much like that of the common giraffe. The giraffe weevil is sexually dimorphic, with the neck of the male typically being 2 to 3 times the length of that of the female. Most of the body is black with...

, the huge comet moth

Comet moth

The Comet moth or Madagascan moon moth is an African moth, native to the rain forests of Madagascar. The male has a wingspan of twenty centimeters and a tail span of fifteen centimeters, making it one of the world's largest silk moths...

and the butterfly-like Madagascan sunset moth. About 80 species of stick insect occur; the Achrioptera species are large and colourful while others are small and very well-camouflaged. Many of the island's praying mantises are also well-camouflaged, mimicking dead leaves or bark. There are over 100 cockroach

Cockroach

Cockroaches are insects of the order Blattaria or Blattodea, of which about 30 species out of 4,500 total are associated with human habitations...

es, including the large Madagascar hissing cockroach

Madagascar hissing cockroach

The Madagascar hissing Cockroach , also known as the Hissing Cockroach or simply Hisser, is one of the largest species of cockroach, reaching 2–4 inches at maturity. They are from the island of Madagascar off the African coast, where they can be found in rotting logs.Unlike most cockroaches, they...

.

Beetle

Beetle

s: Various species of beetles. For example various tiger beetle

Tiger beetle

The tiger beetles are a large group of beetles known for their aggressive predatory habits and running speed. The fastest species of tiger beetle can run at a speed of 9 km/h , which, relative to its body length, is about 22 times the speed of former Olympic sprinter Michael Johnson, the...

s (Cicindelidae): 109 species from genus Pogonostoma
Pogonostoma
Pogonostoma is a genus of beetles in the family Carabidae, containing the following species:* Pogonostoma abadiei Rivalier, 1965* Pogonostoma affine W.Horn, 1893* Pogonostoma alluaudi W.Horn, 1898...

, 65 species from genus Physodeutera
Physodeutera
Physodeutera is a genus of beetles in the family Carabidae, containing the following species:* Physodeutera adonis * Physodeutera alluaudi * Physodeutera andriai...

.

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.

Marine life

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

Mangrove

Mangroves are various kinds of trees up to medium height and shrubs that grow in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics – mainly between latitudes N and S...

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

Coral reef

Coral reefs are underwater structures made from calcium carbonate secreted by corals. Coral reefs are colonies of tiny living animals found in marine waters that contain few nutrients. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, which in turn consist of polyps that cluster in groups. The polyps...

s around the island. Thousands of fish

Fish

Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...

species occur, including the rare coelacanth

Coelacanth

Coelacanths are members of an order of fish that includes the oldest living lineage of Sarcopterygii known to date....

. Four species of sea turtle

Sea turtle

Sea turtles are marine reptiles that inhabit all of the world's oceans except the Arctic.-Distribution:...

breed on the beaches, but many are taken for food by local people. Humpback whale

Humpback Whale

The humpback whale is a species of baleen whale. One of the larger rorqual species, adults range in length from and weigh approximately . The humpback has a distinctive body shape, with unusually long pectoral fins and a knobbly head. It is an acrobatic animal, often breaching and slapping the...

s breed off the south-western coast.

Native names for extinct megafauna

Birds

Vorompatra: Aepyornis
Aepyornis
Aepyornis is a genus of aepyornithid, one of two genera of ratite birds endemic to Madagascar known as elephant birds. This animal was the world's largest bird until its extinction, about 1000 years ago.-Description:...

Lemurs

See Subfossil lemur
Subfossil lemur
Subfossil lemurs are lemurs from Madagascar that are represented by recent remains dating from nearly 26,000 years ago to approximately 560 years ago. They include both living and extinct species, although the term more frequently refers to the extinct giant lemurs...

.

Tratratratra, tretretretre: probably Palaeopropithecus (a type of sloth lemur) or Hadropithecus
Hadropithecus
Hadropithecus is a medium-sized, extinct genus of lemur, or strepsirrhine primate, from Madagascar that includes a single species, Hadropithecus stenognathus. Due to its rarity and lack of sufficient skeletal remains, it is one of the least understood of the extinct lemurs...
Tokandia: probably Megaladapis
Megaladapis
Koala lemurs, genus Megaladapis, belong to the family Megaladapidae, consisting of three extinct species of lemurs that once inhabited the island of Madagascar. The largest measured between in length.-Appearance and habits:...

(koala lemur)
Kidoky: Hadropithecus
Hadropithecus
Hadropithecus is a medium-sized, extinct genus of lemur, or strepsirrhine primate, from Madagascar that includes a single species, Hadropithecus stenognathus. Due to its rarity and lack of sufficient skeletal remains, it is one of the least understood of the extinct lemurs...

or Archaeolemur
Archaeolemur
Archaeolemur is an extinct genus of lemurs that includes two species, Archaeolemur edwardsi and A. majori.The genus was widespread throughout Madagascar through much of the Holocene epoch, and its remains are often abundant at fossil sites across the island. The wide geographical and temporal range...

. (monkey lemurs, baboon lemurs) There are unproved stories of a species of kidoky surviving: see this link.

Others http://karlshuker.blogspot.com/2010/03/more-madagascan-mystery-mammals.html

Kilopilopitsofy, tsomgomby, railalomena: Malagasy Hippopotamus
Malagasy Hippopotamus
Several species of Malagasy Hippopotamus lived on the island of Madagascar but are now believed to be extinct. The animals were very similar to the extant Hippopotamus and Pygmy Hippopotamus...
Antamba: Cryptoprocta spelea
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 1902, and in 1935 was recognized as a separate species...

or similar

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 Madagascar
Madagascar (2005 film)
Madagascar is a 2005 computer-animated film produced by DreamWorks Animation, and released in movie theaters on May 27, 2005. The film tells the story of four Central Park Zoo animals who have spent their lives in blissful captivity and are unexpectedly shipped back to Africa, getting shipwrecked...

featured a number of animals of Madagascar as cartoon characters.

External links

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