Harmonious Protected Landscape · North-West Region · Protected Areas of Madagascar
Bongolava Forest
Corridor
A harmonious landscape protecting the dry deciduous forests of the Bongolava cuesta — home to the endemic Microcebus bongolavensis and nearly a hundred bird species, managed in concert with Tsimihety communities who have long regarded its sacred groves as living heritage.
About the protected area
A forest corridor on the Bongolava cuesta
The Bongolava Forest Corridor Harmonious Protected Landscape covers 589 hectares in the north-west of Madagascar. It was created in 2015, though its core largely consists of a classified forest dating back to 1961, which originally extended over 50,300 hectares. The site is managed by the Fikambanana Bongolava Maitso (FBM).
The harmonious landscape occupies the eastern flank of the Bongolava cuesta. Several villages along the RN6 serve as access points: Antanandava, 50 km north of Ambondromamy; Anjiajia, 140 km north of Ambondromamy; and Tsararivotra, 102 km from Ambondromamy.
For visit information, contact the Regional Directorate for Environment and Forests of the SOFIA region in Antsohihy, or that of Boeny in Mahajanga.
Fauna and Flora
Dry deciduous forest, endemic at every stratum
The climate is that of the north-west: a cool season from June to August (around 15.4 °C), a hot season from September to November (peaking above 37.9 °C), and a rainy season from November to April.
The vegetation is dominated by a semi-deciduous dry dense forest characterised by Dalbergia and Commiphora. Marly valleys and riverbanks host gallery forest, while a wetland forest of raphia palms, ficus and pandanus borders the lakes and clay basins.
The fauna includes 8 lemur species, among them the Microcebus bongolavensis, and 90 bird species. Several threatened species have been recorded, including the freshwater turtle Erymnochelys madagascariensis (CR) — known locally as Réré — and the Madagascar Fish Eagle Haliaeetus vociferoides (CR), known as Ankoay.
Culture and Heritage
Tsimihety, sacred groves and the living forest
The Tsimihety farming communities of the area practise shifting cultivation by slash-and-burn (tetika), which has contributed to a 39% loss of forest cover. At the same time, these communities maintain places of worship and offering — both within the forest and at its edges — that bear witness to a profound spiritual relationship with the landscape.
Certain forest areas are already protected as Ala Fady (Sacred Forest), out of respect for the Doany — ancestral spirits embodied by lakes or ancient trees. These sacred designations offer a form of customary protection that complements the formal protected area status.
Identified threats
Location
North-West Madagascar, SOFIA / Boeny Region
The Bongolava Forest Corridor Harmonious Protected Landscape is accessible from villages along the RN6: Antanandava (50 km north of Ambondromamy), Anjiajia (140 km north of Ambondromamy), and Tsararivotra (102 km from Ambondromamy). The landscape occupies the eastern flank of the Bongolava cuesta between the SOFIA and Boeny regions.