The last couple of years has proven that any crisis can harshly impacted biodiversity conservation in Madagascar and bushmeat consumption seems to be on the rise again.
With the help of local authorities and the local directorate in charge of environment in the SAVA region, 2 poachers were apprehended on the 31st of May 2022 with 46 poached crowned lemurs-of which only one survived- in Maintialana, 3km from Vohemar. The poachers were caught during a routine check and confessed that a network has been revived in the region. The ongoing investigation has shown that the same methods used ten years ago are back since the lemurs were poisoned within the forest blocks before being sold at 20.000MGA in Sambava. This time, they use one lemur from the population as a bait to call its peers.
Conservation communities are horrified by the current situation. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for biodiversity and protected areas in Madagascar to be the first target of various illegal activities during crisis. With the inflation and the lack of economic opportunities, people turn toward the forests for charcoal, illegal woods or bushmeat for survival. In addition, the laws and regulations regarding environmental crimes are not always applied despite the effort of the local communities to raise awareness and act at their level.
