Best of Madagascar: 14-day Birding and Wildlife Tour

The Pitta-like Ground Roller belongs to one of Madagascar’s four endemic bird families, all four of which we will be looking for during this tour.

Overview

Madagascar, the world’s fourth-largest island is, quite simply, unique. Madagascar is home to four endemic bird families, eight endemic mammal families (including five lemur families), around half the world’s chameleon species, and a remarkable diversity of endemic plants and other wildlife. More than 100 bird species are endemic – including such exotic groups as vangas, ground rollers, couas, asities, mesites, and the extraordinary Cuckoo-roller. Lemurs vie for attention, from the tiny mouse lemurs to the marvelous sifakas and the amazing Indri with its deafening calls that resound through the forest.

Our tour visits a range of habitats: grasslands, dry deciduous woodland, the bizarre spiny forest with its odd octopus trees (Didierea madagascariensis) and elephant’s foot trees (Pachypodium rosulatum), lush eastern rainforest, as well as lagoons and mudflats. Some of the special birds that we’ll look for include the roadrunner-like Long-tailed Ground Roller and the stunning Pitta-like, Scaly, and Rufous-headed Ground Rollers as well as the highly prized Subdesert Mesite, the unforgettable Giant Coua, the astounding Velvet Asity, and Madagascar Ibis, to name just a handful. We invite you to join us on this special tour to a fascinating island!

Indri, Madagascar’s largest lemur species.

This Madagascar birding tour can be combined with our Western Madagascar Rare Birds and Mammals tour and/or our Namibia, Okavango, and Victoria Falls birding tour. We also offer a Northwestern Madagascar extension (by request) which includes Ankarafantsika National Park and the Betsiboka Delta for such specials as Madagascar Fish Eagle, White-breasted Mesite, Schlegel’s Asity, and Malagasy Sacred Ibis. Furthermore, we offer a Masoala Peninsula extension (by request) where we target the highly prized Helmet Vanga.

Detailed Itinerary (14 days/13 nights)

Day 1. Arrival in Antananarivo

Your international flight arrives in Antananarivo (usually shortened to “Tana”) today, or you may have arrived the previous day on a domestic flight after joining one of our pre-tour extensions. After arrival, you will be transferred to your hotel, where we can already start looking for some of Madagascar’s common endemic and near-endemic species including Madagascar Wagtail, Madagascar Mannikin, and even Madagascar Nightjar.

Overnight: Relais des Plateaux (or similar), Antananarivo

Day 2. Transfer to Andasibe, afternoon birding at Analamazaotra Special Reserve

Early today, we embark on a roughly five-hour drive to Andasibe, one of Madagascar’s premier rainforest destinations. Here, the unforgettable calls of the Indri resound through the beautiful Andasibe-Mantadia National Park. In the afternoon, we will visit the Analamazaotra section of the park. We should find the Indri with ease, along with other spectacular lemur species such as Common Brown and Grey Bamboo Lemurs. Birding is excellent, with possibilities including Madagascar Forest Rail, Madagascar Flufftail, Red-breasted and Red-fronted Couas, Nuthatch Vanga, Ward’s Flycatcher, Velvet Asity, and the incredibly well-camouflaged Collared Nightjar at its daytime roost. Madagascar Owl can also be seen at its day roost in the area.

Overnight: Hotel/lodge near Andasibe

We hope to find the beautifully patterned Collared Nightjar around Andasibe.

Days 3–4. Andasibe-Mantadia National Park

We spend two more nights in the Andasibe-Mantadia National Park area, exploring its beautiful primary and secondary forests. We will likely spend one day in Mantadia National Park and another in the Analamazaotra section. In these forests, we hope to find Pitta-like, Rufous-headed, Scaly, and Short-legged Ground Rollers, Red-breasted and Blue Couas, Velvet Asity, Madagascar Flufftail, many vanga species including Madagascar Blue, Crossley’s, Tylas, and Nuthatch Vangas, Madagascar Blue Pigeon, Madagascar Cuckooshrike, White-throated Oxylabes, Long-billed Bernieria, Spectacled Tetraka, Rand’s Warbler, and many more. We also have stakeouts for Madagascar Rail and will likely visit a nearby marsh for Grey Emutail and Madagascar Snipe.

We also keep an eye out for other wildlife and often encounter Common Brown Lemur, Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur, Diademed Sifaka, Red-bellied Lemur, Giraffe-necked Weevil, Madagascar Tree Boa, and several chameleon and gecko species.

Overnight: Hotel/lodge near Andasibe

GGiraffe-necked Weevil – Madagascar is renowned for its unusual wildlife.

Day 5. Transfer to Antsirabe, birding on the way

We embark on a long and scenic road journey towards Ranomafana National Park in the southeast of the island, breaking the journey with an overnight stay in Madagascar’s third-largest city, Antsirabe.

Overnight: Couleur Café (or similar), Antsirabe

Day 6. Transfer to Ranomafana National Park

We hope to encounter several widespread species found in Madagascar and neighboring islands en route to the national park, including species such as Malagasy Kingfisher, Mascarene Martin, Malagasy Kestrel, Malagasy Bulbul, and many others. This evening, or on another evening during our stay in Ranomafana, we will enjoy a night walk in search of Rufous Mouse Lemur and an assortment of chameleon species.

Overnight: Hotel/lodge just outside of Ranomafana National Park

Days 7–8. Birding Ranomafana National Park

The magnificent Ranomafana National Park promises some particularly exciting birding. The rainforest here is similar to that at Andasibe, but Ranomafana offers better opportunities for several species we may not yet have encountered, such as Common Sunbird-Asity, Cryptic Warbler, Madagascar Yellowbrow, Grey-crowned Tetraka, Wedge-tailed Jery, Pollen’s Vanga, Brown Emutail, Forest Rock Thrush, and numerous others. We may explore some wetlands and rice paddies in the area where we hope to find Madagascar Snipe and Grey Emutail. As we explore another part of the island, we can also expect to encounter additional lemur species, including Milne-Edwards’ Sifaka, Red-fronted Brown Lemur, and Golden Bamboo Lemur. Reptiles here may include the bizarre-looking Satanic Leaf-tailed Gecko.

Overnight: Hotel/lodge just outside of Ranomafana National Park

Crossley’s Vanga is one of the many vanga species we are likely to see on this tour.

Day 9. Transfer to Isalo National Park area

This morning, we begin another long and scenic road trip across the island, with a short stop at Anja Community Reserve, where we hope to find the approachable Ring-tailed Lemur, as well as perhaps our first Madagascar Buttonquails and Grey-headed Lovebirds of the trip. As we continue westward into much drier habitats, the composition of the bird community changes, with Madagascar Lark and Namaqua Dove among the possibilities. We spend one night on the edge of the picturesque Isalo National Park, with our lodge nestled among its spectacular sandstone formations. Here we’ll search for some more star birds, such as the Benson’s subspecies of Forest Rock Thrush and the attractively patterned Madagascar Partridge. In the evening, we can look for Madagascar Scops Owl and White-browed Owl around our hotel grounds.

Overnight: Relais de la Reine (or similar), Isalo

Ring-tailed Lemur may be seen at the Anja Community Reserve.

Day 10. Transfer to Ifaty, birding Zombitse National Park en route

Before reaching the spiny forests of the southwest, we have another fascinating, albeit long, drive during which we hope to find some of Madagascar’s most localized bird species. On our drive westwards we stop at a unique dry deciduous forest at Zombitse National Park, inhabited by the Vulnerable (IUCN) Appert’s Tetraka, Coquerel’s and Giant Couas, Sickle-billed and Hook-billed Vangas, the incomparable Cuckoo-roller, which we often see displaying, as well as several other sought-after species. In the dry woodlands of Zombitse, we will also look out for Verreaux’s Sifaka and Zombitse Sportive Lemur. If we still need them, local guides generally know the whereabouts of day roosts for Madagascar Scops and White-browed Owls.

We then continue southwest, stopping in agricultural areas where local people will help us search for the rare and elusive Madagascar Sandgrouse. After searching for the sandgrouse, we continue to our beachside accommodation in Ifaty, where Greater Vasa Parrots and Subdesert Brush Warblers can often be seen in the grounds.

Overnight: Les Dunes d’Ifaty (or similar), Ifaty

The range-restricted Appert’s Tetraka can be seen in Zombitse National Park.

Day 11. Birding the spiny forests near Ifaty

A world away from the eastern rainforests, the spiny forests near Ifaty offer an entirely different birding experience. Here baobabs and octopus trees provide a unique habitat for a host of sought-after Madagascar endemics. Exploring this remarkable landscape is like entering another world. Although Madagascar lies relatively close to mainland Africa, its wildlife is remarkably different. Some of our prime targets here include such incredible birds as Long-tailed Ground Roller, Subdesert Mesite, Sickle-billed and Lafresnaye’s Vangas, Archbold’s Newtonia, Thamnornis, Olive-capped and Running Couas, and the rare Banded Kestrel.

We will visit a nearby coastal site in search of Madagascar Plover and migrant shorebirds such as Ruddy Turnstone, Eurasian Whimbrel, Common Greenshank, and Little Stint. Some nearby wetlands will also be visited where we might find an assortment of widespread waterbird species.

Overnight: Les Dunes d’Ifaty (or similar), Ifaty

Day 12. Nosy Ve boat trip and transfer to Toliara area

This morning, we take an exciting boat trip to the small island of Nosy Ve, where we can observe breeding Red-tailed Tropicbirds and, with luck, a flock of Crab-plovers. We will also visit the nearby village of Anakao in search of Littoral Rock Thrush, the only location on this tour where we have a chance of seeing this range-restricted species.

After our boat trip we will head south of Toliara to a small area of scrubby forest, where we will search for the now-famous Red-shouldered Vanga, famously the last new bird species Phoebe Snetsinger saw before she was killed in a car accident while birding, as well as the localized Verreaux’s Coua. We hope to locate both, as well as possibly Lafresnaye’s Vanga.

Overnight: Arboretum d’Antsokay (or similar), near Toliara

Long-tailed Ground Roller occurs in the spiny forest near Isalo.

Day 13. Flight to Tana, birding the city

Depending on our flight time, we will either spend the morning birding around our lodge grounds or return to Tana earlier in the day, allowing us to spend the afternoon birding around the city. We can visit Lake Alarobia, on the outskirts of the city, in search of Meller’s Duck, Malagasy Pond Heron, White-throated Rail, and various other waterbirds.

Overnight: Relais des Plateaux (or similar), Antananarivo

Day 14. Departure

After some final birding around the city (see Lake Alarobia above), you will either depart Tana on your international flight home or continue on one of our Madagascar extensions.

Overnight: Not included

The huge Greater Vasa Parrot can be seen at several sites on this tour.

Please note that the itinerary cannot be guaranteed as it is only a rough guide and can be changed (usually slightly) due to factors such as availability of accommodation, updated information on the state of accommodation, roads, or birding sites, the discretion of the guides and other factors. In addition, we sometimes have to use a different international guide from the one advertised due to tour scheduling.

ADDITIONAL EXTENSIONS:

Madagascar is a huge island, and we offer remote extensions targeting some of its most challenging endemics, including Madagascar Serpent Eagle, Red Owl, Madagascar Pochard, and Sakalava Rail.

BEST OF MADAGASCAR BIRDING TOUR

TOUR-SPECIFIC INFORMATION

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT MADAGASCAR CAN BE READ HERE

TOUR OUTLINE

This 14-day Madagascar birding tour gives you the opportunity to see a great many Madagascar endemics and near-endemics while also allowing you to experience bizarre and unique wildlife such as Giraffe-necked Weevil, an assortment of strikingly patterned lemurs and many chameleon species (Madagascar is home to the world’s largest and smallest chameleon species)! This tour takes you from the rainforests of the central plateau to the otherworldly dry spiny forest of southwestern Madagascar, all the way enjoying endemic and unusual birds and wildlife.

PACE OF TOUR

This Madagascar birding tour is a fairly lengthy tour which may be tiring at times. One of the particularly tiring elements of this tour is the need for some very early starts, to ensure that we can get our birding in early before it heats up too much (this is especially the case while birding in the spiny forest of the southwest). The tour includes a lot of time on your feet walking in the hilly rainforests of eastern Madagascar and also birding in the sandy, dry spiny forest of the southwest.

To ensure we take advantage of the early morning peak in bird activity, we will sometimes leave the accommodation armed with simple (but adequate) breakfast packs, however, we will still likely enjoy a few sit-down breakfasts on this tour. Similarly, lunches will sometimes involve lunch packs, or simpler sandwiches/wraps which we eat while out birding (usually enjoying a picnic lunch) rather than a large sit-down meal. Occasionally, brunch is a better option, and this is likely as well. We do this so that we do not waste large amounts of time during the day when we could otherwise be out birding. Although these meals may be simpler, we will always ensure you are well fed so that you do not go hungry. A range of snacks is usually available to participants which can be bought from fuel stations, etc. Dinner is usually the main meal of the day and will of course be a sit-down meal which are generally of a good standard.

It is possible to opt out of some activities, such as various morning and afternoon excursions. On some days, however, this won’t be possible (if we’re moving between accommodations), although you can always wait in/near the vehicle while the rest of the group heads out (please do ask your tour leader for specifics).

There will be the option for night birding excursions on this birding tour, however, (as with most of our birding excursions) these trips are not mandatory, and we strongly recommend sitting out if you are finding the tour too tiring.

We generally ensure that we do have some meaningful down-time regularly on the tour, particularly on our non-travel days, while on the days when we travel between accommodation, there is less time for down-time (as this is otherwise spent traveling between destinations).

The guide discusses the daily plan with the group in detail each evening. Note that we do retain a sense of flexibility within reason, to allow for us to better maximize your birding and wildlife experience.

WALKING AND STYLE OF BIRDING

The tour is generally considered ‘moderate’ in terms of physical exertion. Most of the birding on this tour is done on foot along trails with very little roadside or vehicle-based birding. The tour involves a few longer walks through rainforests which can be quite hilly for which we may be out for the whole morning. Walking sticks or hiking poles are a great idea as they provide added stability to help with balance and are compulsory for anyone who is not steady at walking. The guide will discuss the day’s itinerary beforehand and will explain in greater detail what the day will entail and if you feel you’d prefer to sit out an activity we can likely make alternative plans.

LENGTH OF DRIVES

There are a few days in which there are long drives, made even longer with lunch/birding/fuel stops, however most drives, when not moving between accommodations, involve far less travel. Some of the longer transfers of this trip include

1. Andasibe to Antsirabe,
2. Antsirabe to Ranomafana,
3. Ranomafana to Isalo,
4. Isalo to Ifaty,

The above are all essentially full-day drives. We’ll likely leave in the morning (e.g. 8-9 am) and spend the whole day traveling and birding en route to our overnight accommodation, likely arriving in the late afternoon (e.g. 4-5 pm).

SAFETY

This tour does not spend much time in large cities (besides starting/ending in Antananarivo (Tana) and spending a night in Antsirabe) and we generally stay in tourist areas which are considered safe. While out birding, we suggest rather not leaving personal items of value in the vehicle if it is unattended, if you are ever in doubt, please just check with the tour leader.

We will not be visiting any areas of extreme altitude where altitude sickness will be an issue, with the highest elevation visited on this trip likely to be in the highlands of around 4,900 feet (1,500 meters) above sea level.

HEALTH, PESTS AND DANGEROUS ANIMALS

As with any trip to Madagascar, particular care should be taken when choosing what food you eat as ‘travelers’ diarrhea’ is unfortunately very common, even when eating at restaurants of a high standard. This is mostly due to the water used to wash food and it is best to avoid any unpeeled/uncooked vegetables/salads. If in doubt, please check with the local guide or tour leader before ordering your meal. Only drink bottled water and ensure you use bottled water when brushing your teeth.

While out birding on foot there could be ticks around, and so it is mostly recommended to wear long trousers and check yourself for ticks after the day out in the field. Additionally, it is a good idea to spray your legs/trousers and particularly boots/socks with anti-tick spray. Leeches may be encountered in rainforests, however, as this tour takes place during the dry season, they are likely to be less of an issue.

Rabies (although rare) does still exist in Madagascar and although the chances of you encountering rabid animals is very low on this trip, we strongly advise against touching/petting domestic animals, particularly while out in rural areas. Please consult with your tour leader if you are ever unsure though.

Even though none of Madagascar’s terrestrial snake species are highly venomous, some are considered mildly venomous and should not be touched. Please be vigilant while we are out walking.

In southwest Madagascar, while staying at Ifaty, it is possible to enjoy swimming and snorkeling in the sea. Highly venomous sea snakes occur in the seas surrounding Madagascar, and if any of these snakes are encountered while swimming or snorkeling, you should stay well away.

Malaria

We strongly recommend anti-malaria drugs for the entirety of this Madagascar tour as we will be in moderate to high risk areas for most of the tour. Thankfully, this tour visits Madagascar in the dry season, before the summer rains have arrived, which reduces malaria risk, however, we strongly suggest seeking the advice of a medical professional before your trip. Any one of the following three drugs are highly affective (albeit not 100 %, due to resistant strains of malaria) as malaria preventative measures:

Malarone (atovaquone/proguanil),

Doxycyxline, and

Larium (mefloquine).

Mosquito repellant, long trousers/jeans and long-sleeved shirts, particularly at night when malaria (Anopheles) mosquitos bite, are advised, in addition to the drugs.

In the unlikely event that one still contracts malaria after taking anti-malaria drugs and other precautions, the disease can still be easily treated if diagnosed soon after symptoms develop: suspect malaria if flu-like symptoms develop within a few weeks/months of visiting Madagascar. If it is malaria, it can be treated with an alternative to the prophylactic that you chose.

TRANSPORTATION

Depending on the final group size, we will likely use a medium-sized bus on this Madagascar birding tour, ensuring everybody has a window seat. Occasionally, we may split up the group into smaller vehicles when visiting areas with rougher or tighter roads. As with our other birding tours, we will use a seat rotation policy within the vehicle which will be explained to you by your tour leader at the start of the tour.

DOMESTIC FLIGHTS

There is one domestic flight on this birding tour on the penultimate day of the tour as we fly from Tulear back to Tana which is of around two hours flight time. We generally try book this flight for the late morning but cannot always guarantee this flight option. This day’s itinerary will depend on our scheduled flight time. Air Madagascar flights are, unfortunately, completely unreliable, and scheduled flight times can change on the day of the flight until as late as one hour before departure, so we will bear this in mind when deciding on the day’s itinerary.

ACCOMMODATION

The accommodation on this tour is of a good quality. It is worth noting that buildings in Madagascar are often not heated like they are in North America and Europe, etc., and so for colder evenings (such as potentially while on the central plateau) it may be worth packing warmer sleeping clothes.

Should you wish to arrive a day or two before the start of the tour, we strongly suggest staying at Relais des Plateaux in Antananarivo, where we are staying for our first night on tour. Please contact the Birding Ecotours office to help organize this for you.

It is possible to get laundry washed at most of the establishments used on this tour, with many establishments only accepting laundry if we have a minimum of two nights, and the laundry is provided on the first day/arrival day.

ELECTRICITY

Lighting in rooms tends to be low wattage, so you might like to bring a good quality torch/flashlight if you like reading in bed!

Electrical sockets are the same as in Europe (except the UK) – 2-prong and 220 Volts ITA Type C. It is good practice to bring international adapters, as many establishments are changing their plug outlets to better align with international clients.

WEATHER

This tour takes place during the cool and dry season when temperatures on the central plateau (days 1-9) may be cool at night but hot and humid during the daytime, with an average maximum of 79-83^oF (26-28^oC). During our time in the dry southwest (days 9-13) temperatures can get very hot during the daytime with average maximum temperatures of around 82-86^oF (28-30^oC).

Although this tour takes place in October, during the dry season, rain is still a possibility while on the central plateau, especially towards the end of the month. Because of the possibility of rain, we suggest bringing light preventative gear (like a poncho or light rain jacket).

WHAT TO BRING: CLOTHING AND OTHER ITEMS

Please see our blog on ‘What to bring on a birding tour’ which will help you pack for this Madagascar birding tour.