Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve
Tsingy de Bemaraha Strict Nature Reserve, Nature reserve with limestone formations in Mahajanga, Madagascar
Description
Covering 834 square kilometers (322 square miles), this protected area contains limestone pinnacles rising to 328 feet (100 meters), deep canyons, cave systems, and underground watercourses cutting through karst landscapes.
History
French colonial administration created the protected zone in 1927, followed by UNESCO World Heritage designation for the northern portion in 1990, while administrative reforms granted national park status to the southern section in 1997.
Culture
Regional communities use the tsingys as traditional collection sites for medicinal plants and regard the pointed rock formations as sacred places connected to spiritual power, protected by ancestors according to local belief systems.
Practical
Access requires traveling from Morondava, located 93 miles (150 kilometers) to the south, or flying from Antananarivo to Antsalova during the dry season between April and November when road conditions permit travel.
Did you know?
This protected territory supports 457 plant species alongside 94 bird species and 42 mammal species, including eleven lemur varieties found exclusively on the island and nowhere else on Earth.
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An unreal place that exists only in this location in the west of Madagascar! Magical.
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