Boost the resilience of protected areas to shocks by reducing their dependency on tourism.

Ecotourism is widely considered a strong mechanism for the sustainable funding of protected areas (PAs). Implemented during the 1990s in Madagascar, nature-based tourism experienced positive growth over the last 30 years with increasing numbers of visits to the parks and reserves. Revenue earned from entrance fees to the network of PAs managed by Madagascar National Parks has never been sufficient to finance their management.

Frontiers of protected areas versus forest exploitation: Assessing habitat network functionality in 16 case study regions globally.

Exploitation of natural forests forms expanding frontiers. Simultaneously, protected area frontiers aim at maintaining functional habitat networks. To assess net effects of these frontiers, we examined 16 case study areas on five continents.

The genus Opisthacanthus Peters, 1861 (Scorpiones: Hormuridae), a remarkable Gondwanian group of scorpions.

New comments are proposed on the geographic distribution of genus Opisthacanthus, and the Gondwanian model is further supported. The diversity of the genus is extraordinary in Madagascar, with the same number of species as in continental Africa, but sub-Saharan Africa is home to six out of the nine groups currently recognized of Opisthacanthus. Given the affinities of the Opisthacanthus groups and their current distribution, a center of origin in Africa could be favored for these ancient scorpions.

On specimen killing in the era of conservation crisis - A quantitative case for modernizing taxonomy and biodiversity inventories.

Background To The Work: For centuries taxonomy has relied on dead animal specimens, a practice that persists today despite the emergence of innovative biodiversity assessment methods. Taxonomists and conservationists are engaged in vigorous discussions over the necessity of killing animals for specimen sampling, but quantitative data on taxonomic trends and specimen sampling over time, which could inform these debates, are lacking.

Methods: We interrogated a long-term research database documenting 2,723 land vertebrate and 419 invertebrate taxa from Madagascar, and their associated specimens conserved in the major natural history museums.

How Effective Have Thirty Years of Internationally Driven Conservation and Development Efforts Been in Madagascar?

Conservation and development are intricately linked. The international donor community has long provided aid to tropical countries in an effort to alleviate poverty and conserve biodiversity. While hundreds of millions of $ have been invested in over 500 environmental-based projects in Madagascar during the period covered by a series of National Environmental Action Plans (1993-2008) and the protected areas network has expanded threefold, deforestation remains unchecked and none of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) established for 2000-2015 were likely be met.

The geographical pattern of distribution of the genus Tityobuthus Pocock, 1890, a typical Ananterinae element endemic to Madagascar (Scorpiones: Buthidae).

New comments are proposed for the Ananterinae (sensu Pocock) or the 'Ananteris Group'. The worldwide pattern of distribution of the elements associated with the Ananterinae, as well as aspects of their ecology, is discussed. The biogeographic patterns presented by extant and fossil elements of this group confirm not only the characteristics of a lineage representing a typical Gondwanian distribution, but correspond also to older Pangean patterns.

Marine turtles used to assist Austronesian sailors reaching new islands.

Austronesians colonized the islands of Rapa Nui, Hawaii, the Marquesas and Madagascar. All of these islands have been found to harbor Austronesian artifacts and also, all of them are known nesting sites for marine turtles. Turtles are well known for their transoceanic migrations, sometimes totalling thousands of miles, between feeding and nesting grounds.

More about the geographical pattern of distribution of the genus Pseudouroplectes Lourenço, 1995 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) from Madagascar.

The genus Pseudouroplectes Lourenço, 1995 (Buthidae) remains among the less speciose Malagasy genera and all the known species are extremely rare. A new species is described from the dry forests in the Tsingy formations of the National Park Bemaraha, extending the distribution of the genus further north. Once again, the single holotype specimen was obtained by extraction with the use of Berlese system.

More about the geographical distribution of the Malagasy genus Neogrosphus Lourenço, 1995 (Scorpiones: Buthidae) and description of a vicariant new species.

The distributional patterns of Malagasy scorpions belonging to the endemic genus Neogrosphus Lourenço, 1995 are revised. Up to now only two species were known for this genus: Neogrosphus griveaudi (Vachon, 1969), restricted to the dry forests formations in the southern and western portions of Madagascar, and Neogrosphus blanci Lourenço, 1996 only known from the Massifs of the Central region. Diagnoses are proposed for the genus and known species and a new vicariant species is described from the Ankarana Massif.

Biogeographic evolution of Madagascar's microendemic biota.

The endemic species richness on Madagascar, relative to landmass area, is unparalleled in the world. Many organisms on the island have restricted geographical ranges. A comprehensive hypothesis explaining the evolution of this microendemism has yet to be developed.