Madagascar

Program

Saving Turtles in Madagascar

The over-arching goal of the Turtle Survival Alliance Madagascar program is to engage communities to protect tortoises in their native habitat, conserve forests through active management, dissuade poaching through revitalizing cultural traditions and holding those accountable who break them, seize and provide long-term care for illegally collected

tortoises, infiltrate and dismantle tortoise poaching networks, and return tortoises to the wild where and when possible.

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Madagascar

Case for Support

Your generosity will help our rescue, rehabilitation, and reintroduction efforts for critically endangered species in Madagascar today.

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Turtle Survival Alliance accomplishes these goals by providing rapid response, triage, acute veterinary care, and long-term care for tortoises seized from illegal wildlife trade, establishing community conservation areas, reintroducing confiscated tortoises to the wild, conducting post-release monitoring, promoting and providing sustainable alternative livelihoods, building schools and water source infrastructure, and engaging in community outreach and awareness.

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Rescue, Reintroduction, and Release of the Radiated Tortoise

The following gallery is a collection of images taken since 2022 demonstrating the treatment, care, and release of Radiated Tortoises into community-protected forests in Madagascar. Turtle Survival Alliance team members work with the local community for the protection of this Critically Endangered species.

A wild resident tortoise cautiously stares down the researchers after being equipped with a GPS logger and radio-transmitter. Photo by Lance Paden

Community members are always eager to lend a hand with removing the epoxy from GPS loggers that have been deployed. Photo by Lance Paden

Rick Hudson meets with community members at one of the reintroduction sites. Photo by Lance Paden

Turtle Survival Alliance staff prepare to radio-track tortoise with community members at one of the reintroduction sites. Photo by Brett Bartek

Researchers and a community appointed forest guardian attach a GPS logger to a reintroduced tortoise. Photo by Lance Paden

Photo by Lance Paden

Photo by Brett Bartek

A wild juvenile radiated tortoise that was encountered during a survey. Photo by Lance Paden

Lance Paden and Brett Bartek with a couple of the first reintroduced tortoises to be equipped with GPS loggers and radio-transmitters. Photo by Tantely Rasoariamanana

Tantely Rasoariamanana with a Radiated Tortoise. Photo by Lance Paden

The rainy season in Madagascar brings the spiny forest vegetation to vibrant life and allows for explosive growth as shown in the new growth lines on this reintroduced tortoise. Photo by Lance Paden

Community members at one of the reintroduction sites join TSA staff in retrieving a GPS logger from one of the reintroduced tortoises that is being monitored. Photo by Lance Paden

Reintroduction team members inspect one of the reintroduction soft-release enclosures. Photo by Lance Paden

Avimassey equips a tortoise with an array of data collecting equipment. Photo by Brett Bartek

A community appointed forest guardian at one of the re-introduction sites poses with a tortoise whose radio-transmitter failed but was re-found due to his intensive searching and familiarity with where this particular tortoise spends much of its' time. Photo by Lance Paden

A Turtle Survival Alliance team member collects a carapace temperature reading from a wild radiated tortoise as it enjoys a meal of fresh raketa (cactus fruit). Photo by Lance Paden

Photo by Brett Bartek

Turtle Survival Alliance team member and community appointed forest guardians work together to closely monitor tortoises at reintroduction sites. Photo by Lance Paden

Several tortoises are equipped with an array of data collecting equipment. Photo by Brett Bartek

: Tantely Rasoariamanana. Photo by Brett Bartek.

Panah, a community appointed forest guardian enjoys the challenge of radio-tracking. Photo by Lance Paden

A wild adult radiated tortoise inspects its observer while enjoying a meal of grass. Photo by Lance Paden

A wild juvenile radiated tortoise observed while radio-tracking. Photo by Lance Paden

Several tortoises are equipped with an array of data collecting equipment. Photo by Lance Paden

Everyone at this community enjoyed watching the drone's view as it flies back to land after a survey mission is flown. Photo by Lance Paden

Radio tracking in the spiny forest at one of the reintroduction sites. Photo by Lance Paden

Director of TSA Madagascar, Herilala Randriamahazo, encounters a reintroduced tortoise wandering about in its' new spiny forest home. Photo by Lance Paden

Researchers use a Dremel tool to safely remove a GPS logger from reintroduced tortoise. Photo by Tantely Rasoariamanana

José Andriamampionina records data while radio-tracking. Photo by Lance Paden

Photo by Brett Bartek

A wild radiated tortoise as observed in habitat. Photo by Lance Paden

The Turtle Survival Alliance reintroduction monitoring team on a recent visit to one of the reintroduction sites. Photo by Brett Bartek

Brett Bartek shows reintroduction site community members the view from the drone that he's piloting to map habitat in the area. Photo by Lance Paden

Tantely Rasoariamanana looks on as the wild radiated tortoise we just tracked enjoys a meal of raketa (cactus fruit). Photo by Lance Paden

A Turtle Survival Alliance team member records data in his notebook as the wild radiated tortoise he just tracked enjoys a meal of fresh raketa (cactus fruit). Photo by Lance Paden

Children from one of the reintroduction communities had fun helping Lance set up his tent. Photo by Lance Paden

Turtle Survival Alliance team reviewing some data the reintroduction team collected while in the field. Photo by Lance Paden

The team uses PIT tags (Passive Integrated Transponders) to uniquely identify tortoises at the reintroduction sites. Photo by Lance Paden

A new school that was constructed at one of the reintroduction communities through a collaboration between community members and TSA staff. Photo by Lance Paden

Photo by Brett Bartek

A Turtle Survival Alliance team member records data that he is collecting in the field of a reintroduced tortoise. Photo by Lance Paden

The reintroduction team visits with the owner of private lemur reserve to discuss future collaboration opportunities within a restored spiny forest. Photo by Lance Paden

Researchers download temperature data in the field from a wild radiated tortoise. Photo by Lance Paden

A community member artist at one of the reintroduction sites poses with some of his fantastic sokake (radiated tortoise) carvings that he sells for his family's livelihood. Photo by Brett Bartek

Photo by Brett Bartek

The reintroduction team visits with the owner of private lemur reserve to discuss future collaboration opportunities within a restored spiny forest. Photo by Lance Paden

Community appointed forest guardians deconstruct a soft-release pen allowing tortoises held inside to disperse naturally at their leisure. Photo by Brett Bartek

Tortoises are temporarily held in small pens within the much larger soft-release pens while they are assessed prior to their release from the soft-release enclosure. Photo by Lance Paden

A wild radiated tortoise sits patiently as researchers record some measurements taken from it. Photo by Lance Paden

Researchers download temperature data in the field from a wild radiated tortoise. Photo by Lance Paden

The March 2023 reintroduction monitoring team and reintroduction site community members. Photo courtesy of Lance Paden.

Children look on in awe as Brett pilots the drone that he uses to survey habitat at potential reintroduction sites. Photo by Lance Paden

A young wild spider tortoise that was encountered on a morning walk. Photo by Lance Paden

A wild juvenile radiated tortoise observed while radio-tracking reintroduced tortoises. Photo by Lance Paden

Tantely is excited to have re-found a tortoise that had gone missing recently in the study. Photo by Lance Paden

Turtle Survival Alliance team members radio-track tortoises through a field of cultivated cactus. ?: Lance Paden

Turtle Survival Alliance team member, Avimasy, patiently waits for the epoxy to dry on the recently attached equipment this tortoise is carrying. Photo by Lance Paden

Turtle Survival Alliance team members check PIT numbers, scute notches, and collect carapace length and weight measurements prior to releasing the tortoises held inside this soft-release enclosure. Photo by Lance Paden

A hatchling Radiated Tortoise. Photo by Brett Bartek

Brett and Tantely utilize GIS software to identify priority areas to survey with the drone. Photo by Lance Paden

Lance reviews some GPS logger data at a TSA field office while catching up on an episode of The Pondcast. Photo by Lance Paden

Key Species

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Madagascar

Lead Partners and Supporters

Aktionsgemeinschaft Artenschutz (AGA) e.V., Animal Survival International, Association of Zoos & Aquariums SAFE Program, Bonnie Raphael, British Chelonia Group, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Dallas Zoo, Disney Conservation Fund, Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo, Gregory Family Charitable Fund, Honolulu Zoo, Indianapolis Zoo, Jill Jollay, Matt Patterson/Stoneridge Art St, Milwaukee County Zoo, Ministère de l’Environnement et du Développement Durable, Natural Encounters Conservation Fund, Oklahoma City Zoo, Parken Zoo, Robert & Denise Krause, Roy Young / Nature’s Own, Seneca Park Zoo, St. Louis Zoo Wild Care Institute, Tyler Brooks Family, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), United States Fish and Wildlife Service’s Division of International Conservation, Utah’s Hogle Zoo, Wildlife Conservation Society, Will Ahrens, William and Development (USAID), Zoo Boise, Zoo Knoxville, Zoo Med Laboratories