Madagascar

135 million years ago Madagascar, along with India, separated from the super Continent, Gondwanaland. Madagascar then separated from India 88 million years ago and consequently the fauna and flora of the island has evolved in almost complete isolation. As a result, eighty percent of Madagascar's animal and plant species are found nowhere else on Earth leading many to call this the 'Eighth Continent'.

Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the World and slightly bigger than France. The population currently stands at around twenty million and the earliest inhabitants of the island arrived from Borneo roughly two thousand years ago, making Madagascar possibly the last major landmass on Earth to be settled by people. The ethnicity of the island is predominantly Austronesian and East African Bantu with some Arab influence. Forty-five percent of the country are Christian while the majority of the remainder practice traditional beliefs; the official languages of this island Nation are Malagasy and French.

From the unique spiny desert in the south-west to true rain forest and beautiful beaches, the diversity of Madagascar is legendary. Of the 10,000 different plant species on the island, ninety percent are endemic, including 170 different species of palms, 960 orchid species and 6 of the World’s 8 different baobabs. For wildlife enthusiasts the main prize are the lemurs, an infraorder of primate that evolved in the absence of other monkeys. There are 99 species of lemur and they vary from baboon size down to the fabulously named aye-aye, a purely nocturnal lemur with an extended middle digit.

While not an obvious or classic beach destination, Nosy Be and the other islands of the north-east coast are home to both spectacular beaches as well as some World class diving. The capital, Antananarivo, is also worth a visit with its remnant French colonial architecture and surprisingly good restaurants. Combining lemurs, diving and extraordinary landscapes, with Malagasy hospitality, a safari to Madagascar is a wonderful adventure that should appeal to the naturalist and inner explorer.