World Wildlife Fund

Mahafaly traditional dance
© photo: WWF-Canon / Richard HAMILTON

Known as "Ala Maiky," the Spiny Forest in the south of Madagascar receives only 12 to 24 inches of rain per year and still supports an extraordinary range of species. But the region's biodiversity is only the start. 

The Spiny Forest is also home to four ethnic groups: the Vezos on the western coast; the Mahafaly occupying the plateau of the same name in the southwest; the Baras in the interior; and the Antandroy in the extreme south. Each has an intimate relationship with the land: it is their hardware store, their pharmacy and, in times of drought and famine, their vital source of food. The forest serves as pasture for precious cattle and refuge from rural cattle thieves. Most important, the forest is where they bury their dead. Huge, above-ground, earthen tombs are built to give sanctuary to the spirits of ancestors, creating sacred places. Together with the unique wildlife and plant life, the customs and traditions of the local people make this a truly extraordinary place.

Community forest management

Less than 3 percent of the Spiny Forest is within formally protected areas such as the Andohahela and Tsimanempetsotsa national parks and Beza Mahafaly special reserve. Instead of creating new protected areas, there is a movement to put control of resources within local hands.

One method is to use the status of parcs agrees (authorized parks), which form part of the formal protected areas network, but which are managed locally. There are other unique legal mechanisms that WWF has been developing with Malagasy conservationists that can transfer management responsibilities for natural resources to local communities.

For the various ethnic groups in the Spiny Forest, conservation is a familiar concept - they have managed and used the land for centuries. But the pressures of a developing nation spurred into producing more exports, combined with migration and a swelling urban population, have made the task considerably more complex than in the past.

Of an estimate 6.9 million acres of Spiny Forest, some 1.84 million acres - 26 percent - have been degraded. Much of the variety of the forest has been replaced with monotonous landscapes of plantations and burnt-off or eroded areas.

WWF is working with local people to revive appreciation of the value of the forest's riches, and the traditional and social attitudes that have fostered their care. For the Spiny Forest to remain, the traditions and practices of local communities must be brought to the forefront of modern land use practices and policies.