Eva Colberg's Adventures in Madagascar: Lemurs and Sambatra

Here is part three of Eva's updates. Everything below is Eva's own words. I hope you enjoy!

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Mada Update 3

November 2, 2014

Today I parted ways with all my teachers and fellow students, embarking on a solitary journey to the northeast of the country, where I will be working with the Missouri Botanical Garden to conduct research on the abundance and distribution of several endangered palm species. I am both nervous and incredibly excited, but I should first bring you up to date with the rest of my trip.

Back when we were still stationed in Manakara, we took a few days out to Kianjavato, where the Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership has a research station. Their headline projects all involve lemurs, as nine species of lemur live in the forest there (two of which are endangered: the black-and-white-ruffed lemur, Varecia variegata, and the greater bamboo lemur, Prolemur simus). Since this was our lemur ecology unit, we spent our time out in the field learning behavior, population, and habitat-monitoring techniques, and thus also got to witness the fantastic creatures in their natural state. They are really quite funny to watch; they make pig-like noises to each other, leap about the canopy at daredevil heights, and get in spats with each other over jackfruit.

Greater Bamboo Lemur, Prolemur simus

Black-and-White-Ruffed Lemur, Varecia variegata

Aye-aye

One of the lemur research programs there is focused on aye-ayes, and we were lucky enough to attend the release of an aye-aye that they had just attached a tracking device to. Aye-ayes fall on the side of the more bizarre lemurs, with their ridiculously long fingers and wide, round eyes.

We spent our last week together in Mananjary, witnessing and even participating in some of the festivities of the Sambatra (Here's a Peace Corps Volunteer's Impression -Amanda W.). Sambatra, which means happiness, is a cultural event that happens every seven years. It involves many parades, processions, singing, dancing, and rituals, and culminates in the circumcision of all the young boys in the participating clans.

Most importantly for the Antambahoaka of this region, the circumcision represents the boys finally being recognized as male, and thus gaining a place in their society (most boys are actually now circumcised at birth, so the ceremony is just the official acceptance of their boyhood). It is interesting to see how globalization is affecting the tradition, though. Crowds now gather around every event with cameras, tablets, and video recorders in hand; there are some foreigners, but the majority are simply Malagasy from other regions. We spoke with one of the clan leaders, and he expressed concern about the Malagasy media’s portrayal of the event as betraying the traditional purpose. Nonetheless, it is fantastic to watch when scores of women dance across the beach in colorfully striped lamba-hoany carrying reeds for mat weaving back to their tranobe (Tranobe is the "palace" of the clan; the king holds meetings and important events within this single-roomed building. Literally translated it means big house. -Eva C.).