Lemur News 3__1998 .Pdf
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LemurNewsVol.3,1998Page1 cal Society) du 10 au 14 août 1998. Environ 300 Congressi- stes venant de différents pays du Monde seraient attendus EDITORIAL dans nos murs à ce moment là. Le G.E.R.P ou Groupe d’Etude et de Recherche sur les Primates de Madagascar prend la responsabilité exclusive pour la réalisation de ce Congrès. Pour cela, les membres du Some time has passed since Lemur News Vol. 2 has been G.E.R.P se sont intégrés dans le secrétariat du Congrès et published. Thanks to the Margot Marsh Biodiversity Foun- se sont divisés en trois cellules avec comme Coordinatrice, dation, who is providing funds for Lemur News Vol. 3 and 4, Madame le Secrétaire Général de cet O.N.G. qui est le we are now able to resume publication of this newsletter. Professeur Berthe Rakotosamimanana et qui est même le Conservation International was instrumental in securing Secrétaire Général du 17è Congrès de l’IPS. this support. The time since publication of Lemur News Vol. 2 has been Ces trois cellules sont: eventful with exciting news such as the creation of Masoala • la Cellule Scientifique National Park, the beginning of the second part of the • la Cellule Communication Environmental Action Plan (Program Environemental II), • la Cellule Logistique or the organization of the 20th Congress of the IPS in Antananarivo. Madagascar’s politicians, conservationists Chaque cellule est composé d’un chef, un assistant et des and primatologists are on the move and developped a strong étudiants. momentum that give hope for the future. La Cellule Scientifique assure la réception et l’acceptation As already announced in Lemur News Vol. 2, the editorial des actes à présenter au Congrès. La Cellule Communicati- office has been handed over to Jörg Ganzhorn, Berthe Ra- on est la responsable de la demande de sponsoring pour le kotosamimanana and Michael Schwibbe. We thank Bill Congrès et la transmission de toutes les informations. La Konstant and Russ Mittermeier for their initiative to get Cellule Logistique intervient dans l’accueil des Congressi- Lemur News off the ground, and for compiling the first two stes, ainsi que de la préparation de toute la logistique issues of this newsletter with great skills. Both continue to nécessaire pour accueillir le Congrès (réalisation de la po- support our efforts. Stephen Nash will stay on board to help chette bleue, réservation d’hôtel, repas,... etc. Elle organise- whenever needed with his outstanding drawings. Heike ra aussi un concours de jardin pour l’amélioration du cadre Klensang, Brigitte Raharivololona, Klaus Rupp and Birgit à l’Université et supervise la réhabilitation de ce dernier. Thede will solve any technical problems. They are in charge Pour ce Congrès, le G.E.R.P a recruté un staff exécutif: une of the layout, publication and getting Lemur News in the secrétaire traductrice, une secrétaire de traitement de texte, Internet. The team has been newly assembled and, except un comptable et un coursier. En quelque sorte, il était for Michael and Heike, none of us has produced a journal comme un petit créateur d’emploi. before. We will try, we will do what we can, but we need your Un tour pré-congrès aura lieu dans le Parc National de help. Any journal can only be as good as the contributions it Ranomafana et organisé par l’ICTE (Institute for the Con- receives. We had the impression, that people were hesitant servation of Tropical Environments). Il sera réservé aux to send in their contributions since publication of Lemur Congressistes venant des pays en voie de développement. News had not been secured due to lack of funds. We hope Des démonstrations des techniques d’études sur terrain that this will change and that we will be able to achieve some seraient la base de cet tour. Des tours post- congrès sont continuity and regularity. In particular we would like to aussi organisés par Cortez Travel & Expeditions dans diffé- urge Malagasy students and researchers to submit short rentes aires protégées et sites touristiques. articles or summaries of their work. Vous serez donc tous les bienvenu(e)s à Madagascar: l’île To reduce the cost of production and mailing, we would like aux mille visages de par sa biodiversité si précieuse et si to make Lemur News available in the Internet. It should be menacée. available under: http://www.dpz.gwdg.de/lnews/lnews.htm. Those of you, who are on our mailing list but think that they Berthe Rakotosamimanana can do with the electronic form, please let us know. We will Dépt. de Paléontologie et d’Anthropologie Biologique, Facul- then remove your name from the mailing list. té des Sciences, Université d’Antananarivo, Madagascar Jörg U. Ganzhorn Institut für Zoologie, Universität Hamburg, Martin-Luther- King-Platz 3, D-20146 Hamburg, Germany Madagascar creates its largest protec- Berthe Rakotosamimanana ted area on the Masoala Peninsula Dépt. de Paléontologie et d’Anthropologie Biologique, Facul- té des Sciences, Université d’Antananarivo, Madagascar On October 18 and 19th, the Malagasy government officially inaugurated the Masoala National Park, culminating ef- Michael Schwibbe forts since 1988 to establish a park on this northeastern Deutsches Primatenzentrum, Kellnerweg 4, D-37077 Göt- peninsula. tingen, Germany The park is an important step for the Malagasy Republic; it may be Madagascar’s — and the world’s — best chance to preserve species rare on the island and nonexistent else- where. Consisting of 2 300 km2 of primary rain and littoral NEWS and ANNOUNCEMENTS forests, the new park is triple the size of the largest pre-exi- sting rain forest reserve, and is one of Madagascar’s only reserves that protects significant tracts of lowland and coa- Activités du G.E.R.P (Groupe d’Etude et stal rain forest. It also contains three marine reserves that will protect the peninsula’s fringing coral reefs. de Recherche sur les Primates de Mada- Except for limited floral and faunal surveys, this area’s gascar) dans la préparation du XVIIè biodiversity was little known until systematic surveys were Congrès de l’IPS (International Prima- carried out in 1993-1994 as an essential component of the tological Society) reserve design phase. Researchers from the Université d’An- tananarivo, Wildlife Conservation Society, Peregrine Fund, L’Université d’Ambohitsaina Antananarivo, Madagascar, Natural History Museum (London), Parc Botanique et Zoo- abritera le 17è Congrès de l’IPS (International Primatologi- logique de Tsimbazaza, Center for Conservation Biology, LemurNewsVol.3,1998Page2 Kew Gardens, Missouri Botanical Gardens and many other servation Society, Care International and the Peregrine institutions, confirmed what had been suspected for some Fund, with additional technical support from the Stanford time: the Masoala Peninsula was indeed exceptional for its University Center for Conservation Biology and the United high levels of local endemism — and for the presence of States Geological Survey. species known to be extremely rare elsewhere in Madaga- On the ecological side, the park was designed so as to protect scar. One of the most exciting discoveries was the observati- the diversity of species found on the peninsula and to on of the Madagascar Serpent Eagle (Eutriorchis astur), a maintain species that depend on multiple habitat types. species feared extinct in Madagascar until it was sighted in Boundaries were drawn to ensure that the species of grea- several localities on Masoala by the Peregrine Fund. Their test concern – those that are rare and sensitive even to mild avian inventory also revealed the rare Madagascar red owl levels of habitat disturbance – would be protected. The (Tyto soumagnei) and showed that a number of rain forest design also included corridors to provide for migration of birds considered rare elsewhere are found ubiquitously animals between large blocks of forest. A large area was across the forests of Masoala (e.g. Short-tailed and Scaly included to ensure that significant populations of area-de- Ground Rollers, Helmet Vanga). manding species can be maintained on Masoala. For examp- Masoala was already known as the only locality of the le, the park is estimated to support a population of red-ruf- red-ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata rubra); in their surveys, fed lemurs on the order of 15 000 adults. Studies of the area researchers also discovered the rare hairy-eared dwarf le- requirements of the serpent eagle are still in progress, but mur (Allocebus trichotis) on Masoala. New species of butter- early work suggests that the park might harbor several flies, fish and a gecko were also documented, and exceptio- hundred individuals at most. Although this Masoala popu- nally high levels of local endemism and diversity in palms lation is not large, the recent discovery of this species in the and Bignoniaceae have since been recorded. Not only is the Anjanaharibe Reserve to the north means that hope can be forest rich in biodiversity, but so is the marine zone, with its held out for the recovery of this species, particularly if the lagoons, mangrove swamps, and some of Madagascar’s most intervening forest corridor between the two reserves can pristine coral reefs. Sea turtles, dolphins and dugongs are also be protected. reported to occur around the Peninsula, and a recent study On the social side, the park delimitation team took local found that the humpback whale breeds in the Baie d’Anton- concerns into account at every stage of the design process, gil. under the principle that a park must be supported by local people to be sustainable. First conservation agents (recrui- Designing the new national park ted locally from the Peninsula and then trained to use The new park was designed on the basis of extensive biolo- Global Positioning Systems and maps) mapped villages and gical and socio-economic data.