HKU K11 Eco leaders Training Programme : The African Experience Madagascar 2011 Eco diary. Lau Yuen Yung August 2011

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HKU K11 Eco leaders Training Programme : The African Experience 2011 Madagascar 2011 Eco diary Lau Yuen Yung 2 16 August 2011 Day 1 (2 Aug 2011): Hong Kong Antananarivo Somebody may be shocked if I

1 HKU K11 Eco leaders Training Programme : The African Experience 2011 Madagascar 2011 Eco diary Lau Yuen Yung 2 16 August 2011 Day 1 (2 Aug 2011): Hong Kong Antananarivo Somebody may be shocked if I tell them Madagascar is the first country that I visit outside China. However, it is. When I was heading to the airport, I was so excited that I couldn t stop myself from imagining how I would see and feel in this 15 day trip. At the same time, I was thankful that I got this opportunity during my university life to experience somewhere which was rich in biodiversity and cultural value. The plane was taking off! I was staring at the view outside, which was the Lantau Island with lots of scars. The picture of Madagascar with bare hills that I have seen in some lectures came to my mind I just was thinking if I would be shocked seeing similar scenes later in Madagascar. Our plane landed in Bangkok, Thailand first for another plane later. I could see some Little Egrets and Great Egrets near the runway. Although they are common birds in Hong Kong, these birds still caught our attention. It was so exciting to see birds outside Hong Kong! After a long flight of ten hours, we arrived at the capital of Madagascar, Antananarivo at night. On the way to the hotel, I saw many small houses with some medium sized buildings. This was the first impression that I had for Africa. Day 2 (3 Aug 2011): Antananarivo (Lemur s Park) I woke up in the early morning. Common Stonechat was the first bird species that I saw in Madagascar! I was then trying to use my camera and want to take some nice pictures of it. However, I failed due to my lack of practice before. We had a nice breakfast in the hotel with French bread and tea. Then, we headed to our first destination The Lemur s Park. The vegetation cover outside the windows of our car caught my attention. They were not grown very well. I was really looking forward to see some nice forests later. 1

After a few minutes of walk in the Lemur s Park, the vigorous movement of trees far away attracted our attention. That s the Coquerel's Sifaka.

It was the first time that my heart was beating so fast in this trip. Later, we saw one Coquerel's Sifaka was carrying its baby under its arms.

We also saw the Jeweled Chameleon, which was well camouflaged. The pattern of its body was so beautiful! This park also had the amazing Radiated Tortoise.

This park was also holding quite a number of lemur species, including Black and White Ruffed Lemur, Mongoose Lemur, Ring tailed Lemur as well as Grey Mouse Lemur.

It was out of my expectation that an egretery was present within the centre of the city.

2 After a few minutes of walk in the Lemur s Park, the vigorous movement of trees far away attracted our attention. That s the Coquerel's Sifaka. They were so active and jumped between trees quickly. Just a moment later, another Crowned Sifaka came very near to us. It was just dancing around us. So amazing! It was the first time that my heart was beating so fast in this trip. Later, we saw one Coquerel's Sifaka was carrying its baby under its arms. Their bodies seemed to be merged into one and only the head of the babies was seen. It was really interesting! We also saw the Jeweled Chameleon, which was well camouflaged. The pattern of its body was so beautiful! This park also had the amazing Radiated Tortoise. The size of them was really huge and amazing! This park was also holding quite a number of lemur species, including Black and White Ruffed Lemur, Mongoose Lemur, Ring tailed Lemur as well as Grey Mouse Lemur. Many of them were confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade market. We then visited the Tsarasotra Lake in Antananarivo, which is the smallest Ramsar Site in the world. It was out of my expectation that an egretery was present within the centre of the city. It was also my first time to experience the droppings of birds, which were not very good. However, I was so amazed to see the Comb Duck and Madagascar Kingfisher. Day 3 (4 Aug 2011): Antananarivo Isalo National Park We arrived at the airport for an internal flight to Isalo in the early morning. We could see some Madagascar Wagtail and Common Myna around the airport area. When I got off from the plane, the sun and the hot weather really made me feel I was in Africa. The view was wide without much vegetation. 2

We also found the Common Big-eyed Snake, which really surprised me. A Souimanga Sunbird came very near to us! I was so nervous that I could not make a good picture of it.

3 Before going to the Isalo National Park, we visited a botanic garden called Antsokay Arboretum. It was a very dry habitat with some interesting plants, such as trees that were highly poisonous and a tree that release red fluid like blood. We also found the Common Big-eyed Snake, which really surprised me. A Souimanga Sunbird came very near to us! I was so nervous that I could not make a good picture of it. After visiting Antsokay Arboretum, we continued our drive to our camp site in Isalo National Park. On the two sides of the road, there were all grasslands. It was not rare to see scenes with fires burning the grass. It was usually accompanied by a large group of Pied Crows flying above to catch insects coming out from the fire. From the guide, I knew the fires were initiated by local people intentionally for growing new grass to feed their cattle. It was really depressed that normal ecological succession could not take place with these artificial fires regularly initiated by local people but at the same time it was difficult for people to make a living without grazing cattle. We finished the drive at dusk. Then we had a short walk to our camp site. The guide introduced the call of Madagascar Nightjar, which was really cute. Surprisingly, someone also found a Malagasy Scops- Owl along the path. I could only see the back of that owl, which was really disappointing. We were all looking forward to our dinner after the walk. Finally, it was really surprising and rewarding to have Chinese soup, beef and potato chips for our dinner. Day 4 (5 Aug 2011): Isalo National Park I was wakened up by my mate for toilet. The idea of meeting some interesting species came to my mind and then I brought my pair of binoculars with me. I was really excited when I did find something big moving within the trees. I tried hard to find it and failed in the end. The calls from Madagascar Nightjars woke me up again at 6 am. Our breakfast was so special today as we were accompanied by a Madagascar Paradise Flycatcher. It was so beautiful that I could not stop myself from leaving the table to chase after it. Then we went upstream in the morning. I love this stream so much as it gave me a strong feeling of tropical forests with lots of ferns. The climate was also very nice that made me very comfortable. A group of Grey-headed Lovebirds were flying over our head suddenly. This just made me crazy as I wanted to see them so much! I just comforted myself there was still chance for us to see them as it was only the fourth day only. Fortunately, I could see a Madagascar Coucal at a very short distance. I really love the shape of that bird. 3

After the walk, we went back to our camp site for the lemurs. A group of Ring-tailed Lemurs were playing around and it was easy to take pictures with them.

In the afternoon, we walked up to the top of the mountain, where sceneries were so amazing! There were many fantastic limestone formations.

4 After the walk, we went back to our camp site for the lemurs. A group of Ring-tailed Lemurs were playing around and it was easy to take pictures with them. The behavior of these Ring-tailed Lemurs was so different from the one in the Lemur s Park, which was aggressive and might attack tourists. In the afternoon, we walked up to the top of the mountain, where sceneries were so amazing! There were many fantastic limestone formations. Kestrels and Pied Crows were flying around, just in the same level with us! I had never imagined I could stand in a place with endless boundary. Madagascar was so beautiful! Day 5 (6 Aug 2011): Isalo National Park - Ranomafana National Park We took a seven-hour drive to Ranomafana National Park today. It was really interesting to hear from the guide that a local rich man could have 6 wives, with one wife to accompany every night and Sunday is for taking a rest. Another interesting tradition was when rich people died, their family had to kill cattle and eat beef every day until the end of funeral without knowing the reason. There were endless grasslands from Isalo National Park to Ranomafana National Park. It was dry and hot. I could not imagine any organisms could live in this habitat besides Pied Crows and ants. We stopped at a nice restaurant with a beautiful garden. From what we could see, all those plants were exotic. This did not mean something good to me as I was worried about the invasiveness to local flora and ecosystem. On the other hand, I was really envious of the life that the owners were having. Madagascar was just like a heaven to me and living here was really a dream. A very beautiful forest was in my eyes towards the end of the long drive! We had an amazing safari at night as we were so busy seeing chameleons and frogs! The Whitelipped Bright-eyed Frog was my favorite and I just could not stop myself to scream when I saw it! We also saw the cute Grey Mouse Lemur. We were all surprised by the skills and speed that the guides were looking for those creatures during the walk! What a rewarding night! Day 6 (7 Aug 2011): Ranomafana National Park I was really excited to visit this beautiful forest with ferns much taller than that in Hong Kong. I was told that these ferns were an indication of the good quality of the forest. The first species that welcomed us was the Madagascar Paradise Flycatcher, which had already been our close friend in Isalo National Park. What impressed me more was the Common Newtonia and I was so happy to take a picture of this active organism. 4

The highlights of the day were the lemurs, including Golden Bamboo Lemur, Red-bellied Lemur and Greater Bamboo Lemur. Besides lemurs, we also saw a fantastic species Ringtailed Mongoose.

Tonight s safari was challenging and exciting as we needed to find the organism by ourselves. Luckily, I could find a chameleon by the end and I was so happy about it.

5 The highlights of the day were the lemurs, including Golden Bamboo Lemur, Red-bellied Lemur and Greater Bamboo Lemur. Besides lemurs, we also saw a fantastic species Ringtailed Mongoose. Its golden brown color was so beautiful! Although not many birds could be seen, I was lucky to see a Velvet Asity, which had greenish eyebrow. Tonight s safari was challenging and exciting as we needed to find the organism by ourselves. Luckily, I could find a chameleon by the end and I was so happy about it. It was so cool that Ranomafana could accommodate such a high density of amphibians and reptiles. I had a strong feeling a well-developed forest was so important to wildlife! Day 7 (8 Aug 2011): Ranomafana National Park - Miandrivazo (The river bank camp site) After taking another long drive from Ranomafana, we arrived at a beautiful river bank at sunset. What a big surprise was that we were going to take a small boat to across the river to the camp site. It was really exciting! A large group of children welcomed us and kept asking us to take photos for them. I could see the excitement they gained from welcoming visitors. Besides the beautiful sunset, a very big rainbow also appeared in the sky. It was so wide and large that my lens could not take a photo with the complete rainbow. It was really an impressive and wonderful moment in this trip. Today s dinner was also a very special one. All of us were surrounding a fire and enjoying the hot soup, beef and rice. At the same time, we could enjoy the stars all over the sky. I was really filled with satisfaction and enjoyed that moment so much. We had a short walk farther away from the river bank to look for chameleons. To our disappointment, not many were found with an awful smell nearby. This was reasonable as the forests there were not as good as Ranomafana, which was a heaven for chameleons. 5

Day 8 (9 Aug 2011): Miandrivazo - Baobab Alley Kirindy On the way to Baobab Alley, we saw Jacana, which was a beautiful bird that I wanted to see so much even in Hong Kong. Later, we saw Harrier Hawk.

It was a place with a group of Baobab trees, which took thousands of years to have such a large size. I also tried the seeds of the Baobab trees. They tasted a bit sour and special.

This deciduous forest was so dry that I was wondering what amazing species were living there. A Fosa appeared at this moment! I had never imagined that we could see a Fosa so easily.

6 Day 8 (9 Aug 2011): Miandrivazo - Baobab Alley Kirindy On the way to Baobab Alley, we saw Jacana, which was a beautiful bird that I wanted to see so much even in Hong Kong. Later, we saw Harrier Hawk. This bird was so large and its pattern was so cool! However, I could not escape from the car as quickly as others as I was sitting at the back of the car. What a pity! Baobab Alley was so beautiful! It was a place with a group of Baobab trees, which took thousands of years to have such a large size. I also tried the seeds of the Baobab trees. They tasted a bit sour and special. A silly idea if Baobab could grow in Hong Kong came to my mind at that moment. We arrived at Kirindy before dusk. This deciduous forest was so dry that I was wondering what amazing species were living there. A Fosa appeared at this moment! I had never imagined that we could see a Fosa so easily. I was so excited that I came closer and closer to it and almost forgot the aggressiveness of this carnivore. After sunset, an owl just stopped at a tree in our camp site. I was so nervous and approaching it carefully. That was the White-browed Owl. It was such a beautiful bird with white dots on its head. I love it so much! Later at night, this bird appeared again. I just did not realize that it was so near to me that I scared it away when I passed it. Day 9 (10 Aug 2011): Kirindy It was out of my expectation that we could see so many birds in such a dry forest. Crested Coua, Grey-headed Lovebird, Madagascar Buzzard were just so amazing! I had never seen a bird as beautiful as Crested Coua with blue and purple colors around its eyes. A group of Grey-headed Lovebirds also stopped at a tree. This moment was so precious! During the walk, a guide discovered something suddenly and I just followed him quietly. It was a group of Narrowstriped Mongooses. They were moving so fast and I just followed the guide as close as I could to chase after them. I was so excited to walk past the forest crossed with branches without knowing the direction. At the end, I still 6

could not take a good photo. However, I had tried my best and those record photos were already my best work at this level. Practice really makes things perfect.

After we finished the walk, we realized that the number of bird species near the site was more or less the same as that in the camp site.

However, this bird was quite sensitive to humans. Day 10 (11 Aug 2011): Kirindy - Antsirabe Before we left, a White-headed Vanga was seen. This bird was so lovely!

7 could not take a good photo. However, I had tried my best and those record photos were already my best work at this level. Practice really makes things perfect. Verreaux s Sifaka was seen with a very interesting posture. I love it so much! After we finished the walk, we realized that the number of bird species near the site was more or less the same as that in the camp site. I was just wondering the presence of water source and food available in the site may affect their distribution. A Namaqua Dove was also walking peacefully near our canteen. However, this bird was quite sensitive to humans. Day 10 (11 Aug 2011): Kirindy - Antsirabe Before we left, a White-headed Vanga was seen. This bird was so lovely! This place had so many wonderful bird species that I didn t want to leave. As our car was moving, something nice was found! Henst s Goshawk and Frances s Goshawk! When we were stopping in the Baobab Alley again for a rest, Madagascar Green Pigeons were found. Its pale green body was so refreshing and well camouflaged with leaves. During this long drive, the most abundant species were Pied Crow, Cattle Egret, Yellow billed Kite and Rock Dove, which were seen frequently in our trip. Later, we reached a hotel that may be owned by a Chinese person. After eating ten days of French and Malagasy food, it was so exciting to eat some Chinese food again! However, this city was quite well developed with relatively higher population density. Not many species were found except some Kestrels and Common Mynas. Day 11 (12 Aug 2011): Antsirabe We visited a local village in Antsirabe in the morning. Terraced fields were seen everywhere in this small village. Some churches were built in the village years ago. Biodiversity was relatively poorer when compared with forests. Some Kestrels and Malagasy White-eyes were seen. A group of Madagascar Bee-eaters were flying around. To our surprise, three Six-lined Water Snakes were found. With so many fields, I was thinking about agricultural practice was a way to meet the demand for food due to population growth. However, it really caused problems like habitat 7

fragmentation. How to make a balance between human needs and conservation of ecosystem and biodiversity was really a difficult task to deal with. We had free time in the afternoon to send postcards.

Hong Kong people are working with high efficiency and development in every corner is so fast. Whether the ecosystem and wildlife can adapt to the high pace of change is really in doubt.

8 fragmentation. How to make a balance between human needs and conservation of ecosystem and biodiversity was really a difficult task to deal with. We had free time in the afternoon to send postcards. The staff of Post Office was working so slowly that we spent over an hour to buy stamps. However, I think the living style here is more suitable to people. Hong Kong people are working with high efficiency and development in every corner is so fast. Whether the ecosystem and wildlife can adapt to the high pace of change is really in doubt. Day 12 (13 Aug 2011): Antsirabe Perinet Reserve I was moved as only a few days were left for our trip. Without visualizing the landscape here, I just can t believe that 90% of the forests in Madagascar were destroyed. It was really sad that many precious organisms were lost due to the destruction of their habitats. Sometimes I just don t understand if the demand for using those resources were really so huge. As a tourist, what can I do to help? After a long drive of seven hours, we arrived at our final destinations Perinet. This reserve was well developed for tourism with good facilities and souvenir shops. Calls of the Indri were so loud that it was clearly heard in our rooms. I was really looking forward to seeing the Indri soon. We also had night safari tonight. However, not many species like chameleons were found. I was just wondering the quality of forests. Day 13 (14 Aug 2011): Perinet I saw a Blue Pigeon after breakfast. However, its posture disappointed me and I could not take good pictures of it. I would wait for tomorrow! We saw two Collared Nightjars sleeping on the ground unexpectedly! They were so well camouflaged that I spent a minute to find them even I was so close to them! More excitingly was we saw a Redbreasted Coua. We hid carefully behind a big leaf to observe it. But it was so sensitive and went away quickly. Towards the end of the walk, I was so excited to find a Spectacled Greenbul. Besides birds, I also saw Indri and Diademed Sifaka, both of which were cute and active! A pair of big pythons, which were called Madagascar Tree Boa, were discovered by another guide at the end of our walk. We visited a community reserve at night. The most exciting thing we saw was Mossy Leaf-tailed Gecko. This species is highly adapted to change its shape to hide itself from predators! Its transformation really impressed all of us. 8

Day 14 (15 Aug 2011): Perinet Antananarivo Time really flies. Today is the last day of our trip. After our last breakfast with French bread, we travelled back to the capital, Antananarivo.

9 Day 14 (15 Aug 2011): Perinet Antananarivo Time really flies. Today is the last day of our trip. After our last breakfast with French bread, we travelled back to the capital, Antananarivo. On the way of the drive, I was thinking about the impact that ecotourism bring to a poor country. I still remembered the day in Kirindy, where we used quite a large amount of water for bathing and washing things that the reserve needed to stop the water supply to visitors in that afternoon. Water resources are so limited that not all people here can have enough clean water for basic needs. On the other hand, we were using quite a large amount of resources per person. Will benefits from tourism benefit poor people to have better life in the end? We had our last Malagasy meal in a restaurant near the airport. This was also the only meal that we ate with our guides in the same table. I still remembered the help that the guide gave to me when I was not feeling well during the hike in Isalo. They were just so caring. I was really touched when we said goodbye to our guides, who are really professional. Ecotourism needs guides like them. Day 15 (16 Aug 2011): Antananarivo Hong Kong We all arrived safely in the Hong Kong International Airport without our luggage missing. I was once shocked when I knew that. However, this was not really a problem as we had a great trip, appreciating so many amazing species in such as a beautiful place! Although only 10% of forests are remaining in the Madagascar, the efforts of people that are passionate with the nature are so important to the remaining wildlife in this place! This is also true in Hong Kong. With rapid development, conservation work is becoming more important and difficult. The messages gained from this trip are so crucial for educating the public and spreading the significance of conservation in our place. 9

Belize: In a Lagoon. by Gregory and Jacalyn Willis Copyright 2012

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