Madagascar Undiscovered Treasure

摘要

The world's fourth-largest island, Madagascar, lies 250 miles off the east coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean. It stretches 1,000 miles from top to tip and spans 350 miles at its widest point. A land of extremes, with peaks reaching 9,500 feet and a coastline 3,000 miles long, it is perhaps best known for the biodiversity of its iconic fauna and flora, including lemurs, fossas, aye-ayes and baobab trees, as well as thousands of other species, of which 97% are endemic. One of the last land masses settled by people, Madagascar has a unique ecosystem that remains remarkably undeveloped. It recently added 60 new national parks to its existing 200-which now cover 12% of the country-and it has protected 17 million acres of rainforest. The nation currently is working to combat the illegal forestation of rosewood and other rare timbers, and is pioneering community-led Marine Protected Areas. Madagascar is also one of the seven Vanilla Islands in the Indian Ocean that market themselves as authentically eco-friendly travel destinations.