Ankarafantsika National Park

Coordinates: 16°09′S 46°57′E / 16.15°S 46.95°E / -16.15; 46.95
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Ankarafantsika National Park
Majunga
Area1,365.13 km2 (527.08 sq mi)
Established31 December 1927 (as nature reserve)
2002 (as national park)
Governing bodyMadagascar National Parks
Official nameZones Humides Ankarafantsika (CLSA)
Designated2 February 2017
Reference no.2289[1]

Ankarafantsika National Park is a

Sakalava people are the predominant ethnic group living and farming here. The greater big-footed mouse
(Macrotarsomys ingens) lives in the park and is not known anywhere else.

The park

The park is between the

savannah, scrub and sandy eroded rock areas and some land is farmed by the indigenous Sakalava people. There are a number of lakes and the park is criss-crossed by tracks and paths. There are lodging facilities and guides are available to help visitors appreciate the wildlife and scenery.[2]

Flora and fauna

Ankarafantsika National Park is mostly woodland, and the tree species are typical of dry tropical forest. Over 800 species are present, many of them endemic to Madagascar. Notable examples include the flowering bush mpanjakabenitany (Baudouinia fluggeiformis), the katrafay (Cedrelopsis grevei) used in traditional medicine, the small tree lohavato (Hymenodictyon occidental) and sakoanala (Poupartia silvatica), a large tree with conspicuous flowers.[2]

The native fauna of Madagascar are well represented. Ten species of

Brookesia decaryi).[2] There are two ground-dwelling boa constrictor snakes Acrantophis madagascariensis and Sanzinia madagascariensis, and the rare terrestrial snake Liophidium therezieni.[2]

Mammals include eight species of

Microcebus spp.), the world's smallest primates. The greater big-footed mouse (Macrotarsomys ingens) is a recently described small rodent known only in the park and its vicinity.[3]

Madagascar fish eagles

One hundred and twenty nine species of birds have been recorded in the park, more than half of them endemic to Madagascar. They include the

Madagascar heron (Ardea humbloti) can be seen at Lake Ravelobe.[4]

References

  1. ^ "Zones Humides Ankarafantsika (CLSA)". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Ankarafantsika". Madagascar National Parks. Archived from the original on 2013-03-11. Retrieved 2013-01-06.
  3. ^ Goodman, S.M. and Soarimalala, V. 2005. A new species of Macrotarsomys (Rodentia: Muridae: Nesomyinae) from southwestern Madagascar. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 118(2):450–464.
  4. ^ "Ankarafantsika National Park". The Internet Bird Collection. Retrieved 2013-01-07.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ankarafantsika National Park.

16°09′S 46°57′E / 16.15°S 46.95°E / -16.15; 46.95

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