Operation Wallacea in Madagascar: Day 7
Day 7 – Mariarano 19/06/2024 – Wednesday
Day 7 was our first full day at the Mariarano campsite, where every group has morning surveys. Group C loved theirs, they did mist bird netting where they captured and released the cutest birds, as well as tagging the, so when they are caught again, experts can determine their age. Ms Wykes enjoyed this especially – she loves birds. We got to hold the birds, we got …. and we could then release them back into the wild from our hands, a few of them did poop on us! We also learnt how to properly measure the nessacray parts for data collection. The mist netting was so relaxing and an amazing way to start the morning!
Group A went on a very long lemur route where they saw a variation of lemurs of all different sizes and colours. The lemurs in Mariano weren’t too different from Matsedroy but we noticed that in Mariano they come a lot more often to the actual camp which is super cool to see them so close. Similarly to other surveys, the lemurs and their location had to be logged so the information can be put into a spread sheet used to map out the location and abundance of different species.
Group B also had a fun start to the day by going on the Herp route with Randy. Throughout the course they found a chameleon, gecko and 2 mating moths, which was particularly rare.
Further, group D had their turn of 5am wake up to go and complete the bird spotting course. They encountered and learnt about various birds and their song whilst also being lucky enough the enjoy the beautiful Madagascan sunrise.
Our lunch again, exceeded expectations with a delicious meal. The afternoon surveys were filled with fun as group C caught butterflies, group D did forest plot, group A did herps and B had the afternoon off.
After the afternoon surveys, the biggest highlight of our day came into play..the football match! Thanks to the camp, we had arranged a football match against the locals in the local football pitch. We had been looking forward to it all day and when the game started their was an exhilarating amount of support from the many locals who came to watch the game and they also played some Malagasy music to hype up the teams and emplify our happiness as the music played into the atmosphere.
In the evening most went out on night surveys, while the people from group A played banagrams with the local Malagasy scientists.
Simreen, Robyn & Annika
