MADAGASCAR  PHOTO  GALLERY

I  hope  you  enjoy  my  images  of  Madagascar's  natural  splendors.   All  were  taken  within  the  country  over  the  past 14  years  of  exploring .   Many  have  more  text  and / or  extra  embedded  photos  in  them  -  Bill Love .  

   "Madagascar & Mauritius 2005 - 2006" - - -  click the angonoka tortoise thumbnail to view a 2-part travelogue of seeking herps during the 'Mad Tortoise Tour', and beyond. 

  This map shows all places noted on the photo captions.

   Avenue of the Baobabs, north of Morondava on the central west coast.

   The Hauts Plateaux (high plateaus) of Madagascar's interior. 

   "The most photographed house in Madagascar" , between Ivato Airport and downtown Antananarivo.  Its simple design and cheerful flowers epitomizes the home of a middle class Malagasy family near the capitol.

   Downtown Antananarivo above Avenue de l' Independence at sunset.  The architecture is largely reminiscent of the French colonial influence from 1895 - 1960.

   Healthful food abounds at roadside street vendors.

   A family of the Mahafaly tribe headed to town from the hinterlands of southwestern Madagascar via a zebu-drawn cart.

   A 6-pic collage of Madagascar's friendly people.

   A 5-pic collage of interesting things to see around Antananarivo, the capitol, affectionately known as "Tana" to virtually everyone.

   A 6-pic collage of various lemurs, large and small.

    This gets my vote as most beautiful chameleon in the universe.

   A 6-pic collage taken around Antsiranana at the northern end.

    Would you be a successful boa hunter in the wild?

  What's this  all about ?     Look closely --- do you see a lizard in this shot?   Click to enlarge the pic, and for the full "Two-For-One" story.

    Zonosaurus tsingy is a newly described species from the north with a special escape mechanism.

     It's a dog-eat-dog world out there !   A huge male Oustalet's chameleon zaps a juvenile carpet chameleon below it with its tongue.

   A 6-pic collage of scenery and animals on Montagne d'Ambre.

    Along a dark, lonely road at night, I was not so alone after all...

   A 7-pic collage of wildlife of the Ankarana Massif in the north.

    Aerial view of the tsingy at Ankarana from a small plane.

   A 4-pic collage of reptiles found around Ambanja / Ankify.

    The color blue in chameleons is always worth a few pics, especially in species in which I didn't expect to see it.

   A 6-pic collage of the biota of Madagascar's resort island - Nosy Bé.

   Now you see 'em, now you don't!   This pair of pics shows how easily a big, gaudily-colored, blue-green chameleon can duck out of sight in the blink of an eye.

    Simple experiment in lighting a Nosy Be panther chameleon.

   A 6-pic collage of scenery and fauna on the island of Nosy Mangabe.

   The epitome of camouflage: Uroplatus fimbriatus, the giant leaftail gecko, resting by day on Nosy Mangabe.   This is the first specimen I ever found in the wild, and it's still my most scenic image of one.

   A 5-pic collage of giant leaftail geckos all photographed on Nosy Mangabe at night.

   Resembling an alien visitor to Earth, this satanic leaftail gecko Uroplatus phantasticus  epitomizes the 'other worldliness' of Madagascar's unique reptilian life.

   This pair of satanic leaftails demonstrates the sexual dimorphism I've seen many times in this and related species.  

   A 6-pic collage of some lesser-known types of leaftail geckos, genus Uroplatus.

   This is a very rare species of leaftail gecko - Uroplatus alluaudi - from extreme northern Madagascar.   Click the thumbnail to see its tiny 'horns'.

    The new 'spiny' leaftail gecko Uroplatus pietschmanni described in 2004; click to see its unusual resting position in an inset pic.

   An 8-pic collage of panther chameleons Furcifer pardalis from various localities around Madagascar.

   Sexual dimorphism (the physical difference between the sexes of a species) epitomized in male and female twig mimic snakes Langaha madagascariensis.

     A small collage of cool bugs I've come across, like this 'albino' cockroach.

    Snack time for omnivorous giant day geckos.

   A 7-pic collage of wildlife from Analamazoatra (Perinet) Reserve.

    The docile grey bamboo lemur Hapalemur g. griseus in habitat.

   The male giraffe beetle of the eastern rainforests prefers to eat the leaves of only this one kind of tree that bears pink flowers in Nov - Dec.

   A 5-pic collage of colorful day geckos of the genus Phelsuma.

   A 5-pic collage of herps from Ranomafana National Park.

  Net-casting spiders (family Dinopidae) set up their springy nets at night to snare insects passing by on stems or by air.   The larger image was taken in Ranomafana National Park; seconds later the spider caught a flying moth attracted to the headlight beam I was using to focus.

   A 6-pic collage of herp life in the Kirindy Forest along the central west coast.

   Five to six foot (1.5 - 2 meter) hognose snakes Leioheterodon madagascariensis actively seek out the freshly-laid eggs of spiny iguanas Oplurus cuvieri during December.

   A large male Oustalet's chameleon Furcifer oustaleti, the world's longest species, and a hatchling of the same kind on a fingertip.

   Oustalet's chameleons mating; the much larger tan colored male is on top.  It's typical for males to be much bigger than females in this species.

   A 3-pic collage of the extremely rare plowshare / angonoka tortoise Geochelone yniphora.

   The armored chameleon Brookesia perarmata is the largest of the genus.   Its range is restricted to the isolated Bemaraha Plateau region west and south of Tana.   A diminutive Brookesia minima, the world's smallest chameleon, is perched on a finger for comparison.

   An 8-pic collage of fauna, flora, and scenery around Isalo National Park, Madagascar's 'Grand Canyon'.

   A 6-pic collage of animals from the extreme southern end of Madagascar.

   Verreaux's sifaka is a species of lemur from the dryer forests.   It is the type portrayed in the Disney movie Dinosaur!   

   A 6-pic collage in tribute to the spectacular radiated tortoise Geochelone radiata.

   Toting home the evening meal.   This man has five adult radiated tortoises, live and flailing, tethered to his pole; the sixth small one in hand is a pet for his children.  This is life (and death) in the arid south where eking out a living is tough.

   The discarded shell of a radiated tortoise Geochelone radiata  along the roadside, not unlike a crushed beverage can along one of our streets, provides shelter from the sun for a dwarf ground iguana Chalarodon madagascariensis near Tsiombe.

   A spiny chameleon Furcifer verrucosus can be found inhabiting nearly every large tamarind tree in southern Madagascar.  This is a full-grown male.

   The unusual 'stink plant' Hydnora esculanta.  

   Octopus trees (genus Alluaudia)  loom menacingly at night as a mouse lemur (Microcebus) peers down from the safety of a limb crotch.

   One of our tour vehicles 4-wheeling across "Interstate 10" in southern Madagascar after a heavy downpour.

   A 4-pic collage of rare herp species I've had the chance to photograph in captivity.

   Captured in the act on film !    I'd never have guessed that baobab trees mate just like snakes.

   A chameleon's worst enemy.

   Radiata in the rain.

   You'll never guess where this spider makes its home.

   Cool big red tree spider.

   Geckos gobbling.

   Past tour members meeting Madagascar's wildlife, up close and personal!  

   These are six of the many adventurers / herp  enthusiasts who have been to Madagascar with me since 1995.

     An extremely rare sight indeed...  

*   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *

               I hope my picture gallery makes it obvious that I'm ultra - enthusiastic about photographing Madagascar and its incredible biological diversity, and also having FUN while doing it !   Seeking out the unique biota there has become a passion of mine as I try to record new, rare, and seldom-seen sights on every trip.   Recently I've focused special attention on shooting animals in some form of action, with the emphasis still on the "lower" life forms, my perennial favorites.

        I really love working in the field, despite the occasional adversities of lighting, moisture, heat,  tough terrain, etc.   Those obstacles only add to my resolve to get the shots that not everyone will go the extra mile for.   They aren't hardships, in my opinion, but challenges.   And you can't beat natural backgrounds over simplified studio sets.   Besides all that, just being in Madagascar is a constant thrill because one never knows what will turn up while beating the next bushes.

        I currently use the following equipment :  a pair of Nikon F90X cameras, Nikon SB-26, SB-28, and SB-21 flashes, and a Nikon Coolscan III (LS-30) slide scanner.   Two slide films have evolved into my choices 99% of the time -- Fujichrome Velvia and Ektachrome 100VS.    Besides the hardware, patience and creativity remain my greatest tools.

        My photography may be purchased for many uses, including advertising, graphic illustration, websites, lecturing, etc.   Please contact me to discuss your imagery needs, any aspect of joining me on an upcoming guided ecotour to Madagascar, or having me present a talk to your special interest group.

TELEPHONE: (239) 464 - 6642          

    Sincerely,   Bill Love

All  images  are  copyrighted .    unauthorized  PHOTO  Reproduction  is  prohibited .

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