Knowledge is a vital component to achieving conservation success, and there is much that we still do not know about the natural world and the changes that can impact individual species/habitats or entire ecosystems. For this reason, practical conservation activities must be based on, and supported by, effective research. In addition to the community-led activities we often report on, the members of our Aspinall Foundation Madagascar team conduct research, write scientific papers, and, when possible, present their findings to the wider conservation community.
The Aspinall Foundation Madagascar team at the IPS Congress (from Left to Right): Mija Mihaminekena, Maholy Ravaloharimanitra, Hery Randriahaingo
The International Primatological Society (IPS) is a charitable organisation created to encourage non-human primatological scientific research to facilitate cooperation between scientists and support the conservation of primate species.
Every other year IPS hold a Congress, a high-level academic exchange platform that provides an opportunity for researchers to share knowledge and network. This year was the 30th Congress and it was hosted in Antananarivo, Madagascar. Our Country Director Maholy Ravaloharimanitra attended the week-long event with two members of her team who were presenting some of their research at the event.
The first project The Aspinall Foundation undertook when the charity began working in Madagascar in 2009 focused on the Critically Endangered greater bamboo lemur (scientific name Prolemur simus). However, despite continuously working with the species, there is still a lot we need to learn to support its conservation. During the IPS Congress, conservationist Mija Mihaminekena, presented a talk on the behaviour and diet of the Prolemur simus mother- infant dyad in Ambalafary, Fokontany of Mangabe, rural commune of Fanasanagare, in eastern Madagascar.
It is not possible to save a single species without understanding the ecosystem within which it exists. Living organisms within an ecosystem interact with each other in several ways, including predator/prey relationships and food chains. There is also interaction with the environment, such as water and weather. Understanding the role and the needs of a species within an ecosystem is complex and involves a web of interactions and possible co-dependency. At the IPS Congress primatologist Hery Randriahaingo presented his research exploring carnivore abundance and distribution within the Andriantantely lowland forest and the role they might play on lemur populations.
Maholy Ravaloharimanitra with Malagasy primatologist and conservation biologist Jonah Ratsimbazafy, the current president of the International Primatological Society
The people in our team in Madagascar are dedicated and talented conservationists with a passion to protect the unique wildlife and vulnerable habitats of Madagascar. They also wish to share their work and increase their own knowledge by connecting with others, and forums like the IPS Congress provide a wonderful opportunity to achieve that aim. The next Congress will be held in Xi'an, the capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi province, in 2027, and Maholy and her team hope to be there.