Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
epitomisesthelushnessofhot,wetplaces.It'struethattheyhavebeenrelegatedtoalifein
the shade of more recently evolved plants, but here they excel, out-competing all others.
Although some species are present in dry habitats, the vast majority of Madagascar's
ferns decorate the branches and trunks of the eastern rainforests. One eye-catching species
isthehuge
bird'snestfern
(
Aspleniumnidus
)whichadornsmanylargetrunkswithluxuri-
ant balconies of leaves. The ancient tree ferns (
Cyathea
spp) that once supplied the forest
canopyarestillpresentonitsfloor,contributingtotheprehistoricatmosphereoftheforest.
Often mistaken for a tree fern, the
cycad
(
Cycas
spp) is in fact one of the original seed-
bearing plants. The evolution of seed propagation eventually led to the flowering plants
that currently dominate all of the world's habitats, marking the end of the ferns' reign on
earth. Resembling a tree fern with palm-like leaves, the single Malagasy representative of
thegenus,
Cycasthouarsii
,isfoundonlyintheeasternrainforests.Lookcloselyatitscone:
it holds seeds which, 30 million years ago, became the most significant single plant adapt-
ation in the history of life.
PITCHER PLANTS
There are only two species of insect-eating pitcher plant (
Nepenthes
spp) in Madagascar, but they are spectacular enough to deserve a mention. In wetlands in
the south they poke out of the marsh beds like triffids planning an ambush. One of their
leaves wraps upon itself to create a fly trap, which then serves up trace elements, from the
flies' remains, unobtainable from the mud below. The rest of the family live thousands of
miles away insoutheast Asia, andit isthought that the arrival ofMadagascar'stwospecies
stemmed from a fortuitous migration along the same path that originally brought the first
people - perhaps they inadvertently shared the boats.
SUCCULENTS
With information from Gavin Hart
In Madagascar, wherever rainfall is below about 40cm a year, succulents reign. The entire
southwest of the island is dominated by their swollen forms. Further north they decorate
the natural rock gardens of Isalo, Itremo and the countless outcrops on the central plateau.
They also appear within the sparse dry forests of the west, among the stony chaos of the
tsingy
(see box on
Click Here
)
, and even venture onto the grasslands and into the rain-
forests. About 150 succulent species occur in Madagascar, distributed widely across the
island.
Euphorbia
is one of the largest genera of flowering plants with over 2,000 species world-
wide. Almost 500 are succulent species occurring predominantly in Africa and Madagas-
car. They have diversified into countless different forms, from bushes resembling strings
of sausages, and trees sprouting smooth leafless green branches, to spiny stalks emerging
from swollen underground tubers. Many species shed their leaves at the start of the dry
