National Geographic Society

Photo by Ralph Riley

Posted by Amber Roman

Arriving in Madagascar was exciting and fearful all at once. After two days of flights and a nine hour drive I looked forward to rest, and retrieving my luggage. The days drew on and became hotter and more arduous. However, my admiration for this exotic country only increased with each dawn and dusk. I will always remember my visit to church, and especially the feeling I received as being one of the Malagasy people. In the town, I vividly remember the smiles and salamas or hello's I warmly received. I will never forget the experience the traditional fried bread gave my taste buds. Although I do regret the shortness of my stay here, I look forward to my next visit. I have made friends I will never forget about and experiences that will forever be embedded in my heart. Madagascar now has a special significance to me and it can be vaguely expressed through its beautiful people, wildlife, and landscapes. Viva Madagascar! Until we meet again, Veloma.

Photo by Chrisit Johnson

Posted by Lily Kurosaki

Everyday there is the usual trap check and my team went through JBA yesterday morning. We scavenged through the woods searching for animals to observe. We saw the usual... birds. They're beautiful with their brilliant bright colors and they chirp in the most unique and amazing ways. My team went through the trap checks the opposite way that day, and more than half of the traps were empty. All we had left were three traps to check. Then I thought to myself, "Oh man... We're just going to have another day of catching absolutely nothing". As we walked toward the third trap, our guide, Julie, suddenly stopped and gave us the signal to wait. Bash! Bash! A noise was made.

Photo by Alexanne Neff

Posted by Tiffany Pan

After 5 weeks in Ankarafantsika National Park, I have yet to go down to the bottom of the lavaka ("big hole" resulting from erosion). Julie guided the JBA trap check this morning and was going to take people down to see the lavaka afterwards, so I signed up for JBA in the morning. My job was to carry the bait bucket. Keep in mind, this is the last day we are putting out bait, so the meat had a green sheen to it and was especially rank. I had maggots crawling out of the bucket as we walked... Yummy! I definitely added bait in the traps early in the trapline just to get rid of the rotting meat. With only four traps left to check, I separated from the group to hide the empty, but still smelly, bucket in a safe place. This way I could pick it up on the way out, and I would not have to carry it down the lavaka and back up.