Weird and wonderful Malagasy vegetation

Madagascar certainly is home to some weird plants. The south-west of the country is very unusual in its botanical inhabitants and we saw many of them while travelling around, as well as in the Reniala Nature Reserve near Toliara.

We met loads of baobabs, those iconic giant trees that look like they've drunk too much water and grow so slooooowly that 'saplings' can be already 50 years old. Madagascar has seven species of baobab, some with beautiful red bark, and they are important to people because they hold water, the fruit is edible, the bark is used for construction and the leaves are used for medicinal tea. Many of the trees are also sacred. The fruit, called 'renala', is oval-shaped, brown and fuzzy, with seeds inside. The baobabs at the Avenue du Baobab are estimated at over 1000 years old.

We also came across some arid-tolerant, cactus-like plants called alluadua, with their long, spiky stems with vicious looking spines, and tiny green leaves growing between them.

Another unusual, and endangered plant that we came across was the pachypodium, or elephant's foot, which also grows in the arid areas of the south-west. I loved this one...

Apparently 30% of the plants in Madagascar's forests are medicinal, and for this reason alone, preserving its native forest is extremely important. For example, the Madagscar rosy periwinkle was recently discovered to possess anti-cancer properties and has since been used to produce anti-cancer drugs.

Unbelievably, over 80% of the country's forest has been cleared and continues to be cleared at an alarming rate. This is due to human pressure - for planting rice, creating grassland for grazing zebu, timber for construction and making charcoal. Interestingly hardly any of the forest is replanted, and as a result there are miles and miles of barren landscapes; gully erosion is rife and one of  Madagascar's most serious environmental issues.

In some places though, there are hillsides of plantations - but guess which species? Eucalypts! (yet another marauding Australian species...) Apparently over 120 species have been planted here because they are good for their timber, are fast-growing and their leaves are used for medicinal purposes. Scarily, they are begining to take over the landscape. There are some pine and silky oak plantations too, but eucalypts dominate the landscape (in the few places where people have revegetated the miles and miles of barren, cleared hills. Its really disturbing how much has gone).
The national parks that protect much of the remaining forest have only secondary forest - most of the big trees are gone. It's a very fragmented system too, so there's no connections between most of them.

In many areas the traveller's palm is a dominant species, which grows rapidly and has flourished in areas where the forest has been destroyed. It's so named because it apparently always grows in a northerly direction, providing navigation, plus stores water inside, which can be accessed by thirsty travellers! This beautiful and unique plant is a national symbol of the country.

We continued to be amazed at the unique flora and fauna of this beautiful country. I just hope that the government sees fit to conserve it ... because if things continue they way they are, there soon won't be much of it left. And that makes me really sad.