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Four large mountainous formations, called massifs, rise in scattered points from the island of Madagascar. Much remains to be discovered about this ecoregion, which scientists had rarely studied until recently. The name of the ecoregion is based on its principal species of vegetation--thicket-forming plants of the Ericaceae (blueberry) family. But it also includes many plants of the Rubiaceae (coffee) family. These thickets occur from elevations of approximately 6,000 feet (1800 m) to the height of the highest massif at 9,491 feet (2876 m).
Temperatures in this montane habitat vary greatly, both throughout the year and during the course of a single day. During the winters, it may get as cold as 18° F (-8° C), and the Andringitra Massif in the southern part of the ecoregion has been known to get snow. In the summers, however, temperatures may reach as high as 86 F° (30° C). The isolation of Madagascar from mainland Africa, coupled with the isolation of individual mountains within this range, has lead to a diversity of endemic species. At the top of these massifs, fragile montane habitats are home to many endemic species, including several types of tenrecs, hedgehog-like animals with flexible snouts and round-bodies. Other endemic species include a gecko, tree rat, and mountain mouse.
Moss- and lichen-encrusted conifers and leathery-leafed shrubs cover the ground over this ecoregion’s lower altitudes. Here, tiny geckos scramble along the undersides of tree branches, calling to one another in shrill chirps. Nearby, yellow-bellied sunbirds move slowly and quietly along the branches searching for insects to eat with their long, down-curved bills. Higher up the mountainsides, the vegetation becomes sparser, where smaller shrubs, daisies, and coffee plants dot the rocky hillsides. As highland streaked tenrecs build burrows into the soil, forest rock thrushes gather twigs and roots for their nests deep in the recesses of rocky walls. On rocky outcroppings, Malagasy mountain mice dart from the protection of cover to snatch large blueberry-like seeds.
Like most of Madagascar, this ecoregion has lost much of its natural vegetation over the past century. Burning is the biggest threat to the ericoid thicket habitat, as fires set by humans to create pastureland spread to the higher elevations. Three of this ecoregion’s four montane areas are included in protected areas. For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report. All text by World Wildlife Fund © 2001
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