Madagascar's Top Predator - Fossa (Giant Mongoose)

Fossa is a cat-like, carnivorous mammal that is endemic to Madagascar who is the top predator in the island. Fossa eats Lemurs.

A male Fossa climbing the tree.

A female is resting on a branch on the mating season. She has chosen a branch which just support her own weight and of a male. As a male approaches towards her if she approves him she'll allow him to mate. If she doesn't she'll go to a thinner branch as the male cannot come near her.

She is only fertile only few days a year. So setting her self in this kind of a branch is a nice way of advertising of her availability. This method has been working for so long for females.

Threat Level: Vulnerable

Reference:

BBC Madagascar - Island of Marvels Series

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.

This is a male. It uses its long neck for fighting. But the female is not having a neck as long as this.

This female is starting an ambitious construction project, making a nest to lay her egg.

Using her powerful legs, the female starts to fold the leaf in half. A male is right next to her in this image.

She then curves up the end of the leaf. Inside the curve she lays a SINGLE egg. All around the forest edge, females are busy curling the leaf edges.

Each female seems to have her own design of rolling leaves.

When she finally snip off the leaf edge, it falls off to the forest floor to hatch. All this effort is just for one egg.

Reference:

BBC Madagascar - Island of Marvels Series

Madagascar Tenrec

"Tenrec" one of Madagascar's own inventions. Tenrec is having the distinction of giving birth to more babies than any other mammal on Earth. Sometimes such as 32!

Babies.

Threat Level: Least Concern

Reference:

BBC Madagascar - Island of Marvels Series

Madagascar Map

Reference:

http://www.familytours.co.uk/madagascar/index.php

Madagascar

Millions of years ago a great slab of land broke apart when forming continents. It was in between Africa and India. It's one of the oldest islands on Earth. Isolated from main lands for millions of years. Nearly thousand miles in length from end to end.

The spine of mountains running length of the island divide the island in to two parts where each having its own unique characters, blocks the rain from blowing in from the East. Therefore East part of the island is full of tropical forests and rain. Where west and Southern coast is dry land. Southern part is having the most extreme weather conditions.

Totally cutoff from the rest of the world these species in Madagascar have evolved for millions of years. These species in Madagascar are so rare that more than 80% of them are found nowhere else on Earth.

Reference:

BBC Madagascar - Island of Marvels Series