TSITONGAMBARIKA FOREST, MADAGASCAR - BirdLife International

Plates 4a and 4b. “Lowryanthus” ined., a new and
endemic genus of Asteraceae, not yet described,
discovered in 2006 in lowland rain forest at
Bemangidy (PORTER P. LOWRY II)
which culminates at 677 m, is still surrounded by a
block of almost entirely intact forest estimated to
cover about 27,000 ha. In the 1960s, a sawmill was
operated at Bemangidy as part of a timber industry
project (indeed, the word ‘Bemangidy’, meaning “very
bitter”, corresponds to the old campsite of the
sawmill). The vast areas of forest that were once found
in northern Ivohibe and in the gently sloped areas
around the old Bemangidy campsite have been
completely removed and today these areas are covered
with highly degraded and biodiversity-poor secondary
vegetation. Until recently, slash-and-burn agricultural
practices were ravaging the low altitude forest on the
eastern edge of Ivohibe, but according to Mara
Berge—our guide and also the current president of
Tsitongambarika Forest, Madagascar
Plate 5. Polyscias “manonae”, a new, undescribed
species of Araliaceae, discovered in 2006 at
Bemangidy, of which only two populations are known,
restricted to granite outcrops (PORTER P. LOWRY II)
the local community forest management association
(communauté de base, commonly known as a CoBa)—
this activity has been reduced in recent years as the
remaining forests, located on steep and rocky slopes,
are harder to remove and it is easier to earn income
from lobster fishing. However, if the prices offered
for lobster drop or if lobsters become rare (due to
overexploitation), the forests of Ivohibe will likely be
subjected once again to intensive pressure from
shifting (slash-and-burn) agriculture.
The village of Antsotso, directly to the east of
Ivohibe, is settled essentially by fishermen who exploit
lobsters, tuna and other commercial species from the
sea. The forest of Bemangidy-Ivohibe is primarily
used by the local population for the selective
harvesting of large trees more than 50 cm in diameter,
which are prized for boat making. A boat made of
Calophyllum inophyllum (known locally as vintagno)
may be worth 300,000 Ariary (about $US 150, which
represents a very significant amount in poor rural
Madagascar). The forest also provides raw materials
for making lobster traps, in particular the rachis
(central axis) of the leaves of the Amboza palm and
the trunk of Flagellaria indica (vahipiky). Logging for
wood to construct huts and for other purposes has
also been observed inside the forest, but at low levels
that are thought to have very little impact on the
structure and composition of the forest.
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