Madagascar

• Official Name: Republic of Madagascar • Capital: Antananarivo • Population: 25,683,610 (2018) • Official Languages: French, Malagasy • Currency: Malagasy ariary (MGA) • Form of Government: Semi-presidential republic • Climate: Tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south • Total Area: 226,657 square miles (587,041 square kilometers) • Highest Point: Maromokotro at 9,436 feet (2,876 meters) • Lowest Point: Indian Ocean at 0 feet (0 meters) History of Madagascar It is believed that Madagascar was uninhabited until the 1st century CE when sailors from Indonesia arrived on the island. From there, migrations from other Pacific lands as well as Africa increased and various tribal groups began to develop in Madagascar—the largest of which was the Malagasy. The written history of Madagascar did not begin until the 7th century CE when Arabs began setting up trading posts on the island's northern coastal regions. European contact with Madagascar did not begin until the 1500s. At that time, Portuguese captain Diego Dias discovered the island while on a voyage to India. In the 17th century, the French established various settlements along the east coast. In 1896, Madagascar officially became a French colony. Madagascar remained under French control until 1942, when British troops occupied the area during World War II. In 1943, the French retook the island from the British and maintained control until the late 1950s. In 1956, Madagascar began moving toward independence and o...

The island nation of Madagascar has developed its own distinct ecosystems and extraordinary wildlife since it split from the African continent an estimated 160 million years ago. Approximately 95 percent of Madagascar’s reptiles, 89 percent of its plant life, and 92 percent of its mammals exist nowhere else on Earth. Located off the east coast of Africa, Madagascar is the world’s fifth largest island; at 144 million acres, it’s almost the size of Texas. Madagascar’s climate is tropical along the coast, temperate inland, and arid in the south. The island harbors lush rain forests, tropical dry forests, plateaus and deserts. Its more than 3,000 miles of coastline and over 250 islands are home to some of the world’s largest coral reef systems and most extensive mangrove areas in the Western Indian Ocean. A dizzying range of plants and animals make their home on the island. More than 11,000 endemic plant species, including seven species of baobab tree, share the island with a vast variety of mammal, reptiles, amphibians, and others. From 1999 to 2010, scientists discovered 615 new species in Madagascar, including 41 mammals and 61 reptiles. Madagascar has several critically threatened species including the Silky Sifaka, a lemur, which is one of the rarest mammals on earth. Its name—“angel of the forest"—refers to its white fur. Another threatened species, the rare Ploughshare tortoise, is found only in a small area of northwestern Madagascar where as few as 1,000 of these anim...