Fauna
Madagascar is a sanctuary of nature
Madagascar is the land of lemurs. Apart from one species that lives in Mayotte, all 103 living lemur species are endemic to Madagascar. Madagascar's fauna is characterised by great endemism. The reason why lemurs have developed freely on the island is that they have relatively few predators. In Madagascar, the only big carnivore is the fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox). The tenrecs are part of the faunistic characteristics of Madagascar. Tenrecs are insectivorous mammals living in rain as well as dry forests. While the lowland streaked tenrecs (Hemicentetes semispinosus) life is seriously threatened due to the destruction of their habitat, you often find the tailless tenrec (Tenrec ecaudatus) during the rainy season near watercourses. It is known for its extreme fertility. If the conditions are ideal, up to 32 young animals can be born from a single litter.
As for the rodents, the Malagasy giant rat (Hypogeomys antimena) cannot go unmentioned. It is the largest of Madagascar’s rodents. However, it has a very restricted habitat that is found in the land of the Sakalava between the Rivers Tomitsy and Tsiribihina. New species are continually being discovered on the island. At Lake Alaotra, north of Antananarivo, a new cat-sized carnivore (salanoia durrelli) has been discovered. Its primary source of food is crustaceans and molluscs from the lake. In Ranomafana and Andasibe, a new spider species - the Darwin's bark spider (Caerostris darwini) - was discovered 2 years ago, with anchor lines spanning up to 25 metres (82 ft). This year, two mouse lemurs have been discovered (Microcebus tanosi and Microcebus marohita).