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Exploring Kianjavato
It may seem odd that one of the highlights of my recent trip to Madagascar with Natural World Safaris was the arrival of our guide, Harry, to a dark mountain top, waving a piece of paper. But our afternoon at Kianjavato, open only to Natural World Safari tours, was extraordinary from beginning to end.
First, our visit to the Field Station, where we met a couple of bubbly volunteers, and learned of their work monitoring and helping to extend the range of the very rare Greater Bamboo Lemur, along with the Black-and-White Ruffed Lemur and the Aye Aye. The lemurs are radio-collared, so they can be tracked, but for these three endangered species to survive they need habitat, so reforestation is one of the most important activities of Kianjavato. Using the knowledge that seeds that have passed through a lemur germinate best, local people collect lemur poo and plant the seeds in nurseries, thus automatically selecting the fruits that lemurs (mainly the black-and-white ruffed) like best, and giving them the best start in life.