“Journey Through the Otherworldly Landscape of Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park”

The Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park is situated in northwest Madagascar. It is primarily within Antsalova District, with a small portion in the northeast falling within Morafenobe District. The Great Tsingy and Little Tsingy geological formations are at the heart of the national park. The National Park, along with the adjacent Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Manambolo River runs through it.

The Tsingys are karstic plateaus formed by groundwater undercutting the elevated uplands and gouging caverns and fissures into the limestone. The superposition of vertical and horizontal erosion patterns has created dramatic “forests” of limestone needles in several regions of western Madagascar, centred on the park and adjacent Nature Reserve.

The Malagasy language invented the term tsingy to describe Madagascar’s karst badlands. Where one cannot walk barefoot can be translated into English.

Because of the unusual geomorphology of the Tsingy de Bemaraha World Heritage Site, which includes both the National Park and the adjacent Strict Nature Reserve, the Site is home to an unusually large number of endemic plant and animal species that can only be found in extremely small niches within the tsingys. The summit, slope, and base of a tsingy’s limestone needle, for example, form distinct ecosystems with distinct species clinging to their exceptionally steep slopes.

The area’s unusual and unforgiving landscape has made it an ideal home for a variety of endemic plant and animal species. The western part of the park is covered by deciduous dry forests that are well adapted to the area’s ever-changing climate.

The eastern portion is made up of serene grassy savannas and lowland bushes. Because the tall Tsingy formations are very humid, areas of breezy tropical forests and lianas can be found within the canyons.

If you like lemurs, this park has 11 incredible species for you to see. Among the species found only here are the fat-tailed dwarf lemur, decken’s sifaka, Cleese’s woolly lemur, grey mouse lemur, red-fronted brown lemur, and Sambirano lesser bamboo lemur.