Tsingy de Bermeraha, Madagascar - 2

Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park, Madagascar - 2

The protected area of Tsingy de Bemaraha in Madagascar's west will blow you away. Its distinctive limestone pinnacles like castle turrets reminded me of the fantastic Mervyn Peake novel Gormenghast. There are also dry deciduous forests harbouring rare and precious birds and animals, the Chagres River, marshes, streams, caves and crevasses making it a playground for the adventurer and a voyage of discovery for the wildlife lover.

This biodiversity hotspot has one of the highest rates of endemism in Madagascar.

Species living nowhere else in the country or on the planet include the cute Tsingy tufted-tailed rat Eliurus antsingy, the beautiful nocturnal red-tailed sportive lemur Lepilemur ruficaudatus and the precious endangered Van Der Decken's sifaka Propithecus deckenii, all shown on our video.

I loved visiting this amazing park which is fun to explore, a wildlife paradise and a stunning scenic destination.

10 fun facts about Tsingy de Bemaraha

The site stretches over an area of 157,710 ha, being 100 km long and 10 to 40 km wide. The southern 72,340 ha is a national park, The northern part, which is managed as an strict nature reserve, meaning no visitors are allowed, covers 85,370 ha of land.
The number of species living nowhere else in the world, if you include regionally endemic species, is high. For example, there are 11 endemic lemurs; 72 endemic birds and 33 endemic amphibians.
This was the first area in Madagascar to be classified a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990.
'Tsingy' means 'walking on tiptoes' which you have to do if you are walking among the limestone pinnacles.
The national park comprises the Little or Lower Tsingy and Grand or Upper Tsingy.
The Little Tsingy can be explored on an easy walk of around three hours duration, through crevasses, the base of the peaks and the forest; and to two viewpoints. Here we saw the Tsingy tufted-tailed rat Eliurus antsingy, the giant coa Macronectes giganteus and the grey-headed lovebird Agapornis canus, among other species.
The Big Tsingy is more of a full-day excursion. You need to wear carbiners and harnesses provided by your guide and climb ladders, cross suspension bridges and rock hop. It is perfectly safe if you are moderately fit, and heaps of fun as long as you don't suffer from vertigo. We passed through dark caves with frogs and geckos, climbed to viewpoints with amazing views and wildlife including gorgeous Van der Decken's sifaka Propithecus deckenii, and walked through pristine forest seeing bright orange pygmy kingfishers Corythornis madagascariensis and other lovely birds.
There are other trails you can do, including a two-day trail camping overnight in the park and visiting an underground cave. This looks fab (we didn't have time to do it).
You can only enter the national park with a local guide but this is a good thing. The guides know a lot about the wildlife and know where the birds and animals tend to roost and rest.
The national park provides employment for the local community and as such is supported by local people, who are proud of their natural heritage.

More about Tsingy's wildlife

Lemurs

Most of the lemurs to be found in the Tsingy are endemic. I am focusing here on the two species we saw: Van der Decken's sifaka and the red-tailed sportive lemur.

Much of the information in the following profiles is taken from the excellent book: Nick Garbutt 2007, Mammals of Madagascar: a complete guide, Yale University Press.

Van der Decken's sifaka Propithecus deckenii
https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/18357/16116046

All sifakas are active during the day and live in trees. They are very athletic, leaping from tree to tree and hanging with their feet from vertical branches to reach with their long arms for food. Their hands and feet are strong and made for grasping on branches, and their legs are good for leaping. They will also leap across the ground to get to an area of safety.
Decken's sifaka has a restricted and fragmented range. It lives in patches of highly fragmented deciduous forest in western Madagascar between the Mahavavy and Manambolo Rivers.
These social animals live in groups of between two and ten, and two adult females, each with young, can comprise a troupe.
Their main threat is from further habitat degradation, as trees they prefer are burned to provide pasture for livestock and cut for charcoal production.
Van der Decken's sifaka is not hunted for food as there is a taboo protecting them from harm from humans.
This sifaka eats fruit and leaves.
Decken's sifaka is quite a large lemur: it is up to 92 cm (36 in) long, with length being equally divided between body and tail, and weighs between 3 and 6 kg (7 and 13 lbs)
Like all sifakas, this sifaka will leap from pinnacle to tree to rock with a baby on its back. They can leap up to 12.2 meters (40 feet) each time.

Red-tailed sportive lemur Lepilemur ruficaudatus

https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/11621/16123992

Sportive lemurs are nocturnal and live in trees. These medium-sized lemurs have long tails and powerful hindlegs so they can leap long distances. They cling vertically to tree trunks, so during the day can rest in hollows in, or forks of, trees.
This lemur is listed as vulnerable in the IUCN Red List as its habitat is fragmented and continues to reduce.
This lovely creature has one of the lowest resting metabolic rates of any mammal, meaning if there are no habitat trees nearby, they can die as they do not have the energy to move to more distant trees.
These sportive lemurs eat leaves and fruit.
Breeding pairs share a home range of about a hectare but spend little time together and these lemurs are mostly solitary. However, they will share the same tree hole if there is a shortage of suitable habitat.
One infant is born between September and November, and is carried round in the mother's mouth. The young lemur is placed on a branch or in a tree hole while the mother forages.
They can travel up to a kilometre a night to feed but do not travel for as long in winter, to retain energy.
If they feel threatened, red-tailed sportive lemurs will bang their hindfeet on branches and shake the tree.

Birds

Like most of the lemurs, many birds are endemic to the Tsingy area of western Madagascar. They are supremely adapted to living in dry arid climates with deciduous trees.

Giant coua Coua gigas

https://www.beautyofbirds.com/giantcouas.html

Giant couas are large mainly ground-dwelling birds endemic to western Madagascar.
Although giant couas are not threatened under international legislation, their habitat is decreasing due to logging and burning.
Giant couas live in dry deciduous forests.
These birds are members of the cuckoo family but do not lay their eggs in other birds' nests. They build their own nests of twigs and leaves in shrubs and trees, and raise their own young.
Giant couas spend much of their time foraging on the ground for insects, seeds, fruit, snails and small reptiles. In the rainy season, when they breed, they will leap into the air to catch flying insects, perhaps because the male must give food to the female so she will breed with him.
These birds are quite tame but will fly to perch on trees when they feel threatened.

Getting to and exploring the Tsingy

http://www.travelmadagascar.org/PARKS/Tsingy-Bemaraha-National-Park.html

Tsingy de Bermaraha is not an easy place to reach. One of the pleasantest and easiest ways of getting there is to do what we did and take a canoeing tour down Manambolo Gorge. You can also drive on very rough tracks - if you opt to do this it is recommended to hire a driver.

There are accommodation options both north and south of the park, depending on how you get there. These range from basic to comfortable.

You can only explore the Tsingy with a guide. These can be hired from a number of visitors' centres in the region.

The website cited above is an excellent source of information, as are Bradt and Lonely Planet guides.

About this video

This video is part 2 of a series on Madagascar.

Part 1 dealt with our trek across the Bongalavo Mountains and most of our canoeing trip down Manambolo River.
Part 3 will describe our journey to and our time in the outstanding Kirindy National Park and Baobab Alley.

Do you have questions or comments about this article? Email maddestinations@gmail.com or leave a comment under the video

Watch the video

Watch Part 2 now