Our Mariners Are Driven By Reef Conservation

This week we began work on our 6^th artificial reef! The reef which we have already named “The Parking lot” gets its name from the unique structures we have sourced. MRCI has purchased 3 broken down cars which we have scraped down to their frames to sink on our home reef as our newest reef addition! The three cars will provide a large permanent structure which is intended to attract larger organisms to our reef.

Once the cars were purchased and prepared came the difficult part, actually transporting them to Nosy Komba. Due to the fact that Nosy Komba has no roads there were no cars available for this project on our home island. Our search ended up on Nosy Be where we were able to find multiple contenders. Figuring out how to move the large metal frame across the ocean to our island lead to lots of brainstorming before we eventually came up with a plan we were confident in.

The first car was loaded onto a truck with the help of multiple local men, then it was driven to the port. Once it was off of the truck at the port we began tying 23 empty gas cans to the frame which we were hoping would act as buoyancy devices. The interior of the car was filled cans and two clusters were tied to the front of the car. The men then helped push the car down the slope into the port water then we tied it to the boat to be towed. The moment of truth was when we began to pull away from the port and pulled the car into the deeper water. It was a huge relief to see that the car did in fact float! Multiple yellow cans and the roof of the car bobbed on the surface as we slowly sailed out of the port.

The ride to camp was 100% Mora Mora. We sailed back to Komba slow and steady with the car in tow getting a few interested on-lookers along the way! Once it was time to put the car down the cans were untied from the frame and the car was dropped down into the sand. The other two cars will be joining it soon and then work on the reef will begin! We are very excited about having these unique structures for our Volunteers to dive on that will hopefully encourage new species on our reef!

Once all the cars are transported and in place there will be lots more information to come! Be sure to be on the lookout for upcoming blogs and photos of our new parking lot!

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The Season To See Baby Black Lemurs

As we entered mid-September Volunteers were excited to report sightings of infant black lemurs! Tiny masses of dark fur clinging to the bellies of females almost makes them easy to miss! Seeing infants is a huge deal. However due to the mating pattern of the black lemur, which is dwindling in population size.

Black lemurs typically mate between April and May and have a gestation period of approximately 125 days. One offspring is the most common however twins are also a possibility! Black lemurs are only found in the north-western area of Madagascar making Nosy Komba one of the only places you can see them in the wild. Due to a lack of research done specifically on black lemurs, experts are not positive of the exact remaining size of the species. It is estimated that black lemurs have the lowest population size within the genus of only 450-2,300 lemurs. This low population size makes the sighting of infants that much more special.

Having an annual breeding schedule means the lemurs typically only breed once a year. Once the baby is born, it clings tightly to its mother. They will shift only slightly to nurse for its first three weeks. At 4 weeks old, the baby black lemurs can begin to move small objects and can even travel a small distance. By 7 weeks old they can explore their environment. The babies are not completely independent until 5-6 months when they are weaned from their mothers.

Moms provide more than food for the babies though! The moms also groom, protect, transport and socialize their young. During the period of time that the baby is dependent on their mother. They are slowly learning how to do these things for themselves. Eventually once the baby black lemur has reached 2 years old they have become sexually matured and can begin reproducing themselves.

Unfortunately, the population size continues to be threatened. This is due to the loss of habitat in their already limited natural location and their breeding pattern.  Hopefully through the continued efforts to conserve their natural habitats and to raise awareness and education on Black Lemurs and their species, MRCI can continue to study these amazing creatures for decades to come!

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Author: Kelly King
Date: September 2018

Island outreach on The Spirit of Malala

One of the amazing volunteer programs that we offer is Island Outreach, where volunteers spend 10 days sailing on our conservation and research vessel, The Spirit of Malala, to surrounding islands as well as to the mainland of Madagascar. The trip is a combination of projects giving volunteers the opportunity to teach, do construction, participate on turtle and bird data collection, collect batteries from local villages for recycling and go on regular hikes!

For Volunteers with a limited time frame the trip allows for them to participate in projects, and travel around Madagascar at the same time! Each trip is accompanied by a staff member, a forest guide as well as The Spirit of Malala boat captain, Abdou, and a private chef! I was lucky enough to get to go on a recent trip and had an incredible time with the group of Volunteers that I went with.

The journey began in Nosy Be where the Volunteers and I visited the CNRO museum and learned about Madagascar’s marine life. Hearing about the local marine life, especially seeing the whale skeleton, had all the Volunteers excited to get in the water! When we left the museum, we headed to the port where we were picked up and brought to The Spirit of Malala for the first time! The boat is incredibly comfortable, there are two bathrooms (both with showers) a table with enough chairs to sit 14, a kitchen, and even a swimming platform to make entering and exiting the water easier.

During the trip, all of our bags were stored on The Spirit of Malala but we would actually set up tents and sleep on the beach at night! Meals were prepared and ate on the boat (all were extremely delicious), and we were able to take showers on The Spirit of Malala as well. When we were traveling from place to place everyone could be found lounging in the beanbags or sitting up in the front of The Spirit of Malala, journaling, napping or getting to know one another. Seeing how we were all living in very close proximity for 10 days, everyone got to know each other quickly and it was never difficult to find someone to join you in a game of cards or a conversation.

By far one of the highlights of the trip is that it gives the volunteers the opportunity to see many places in Madagascar over the 10 day period. Every day we arrived at a new white sand beach, or swam on another unbelievable coral reef. We traveled to multiple islands and the north of the mainland. We even stopped in Nosy Iranja during the trip which is by far one of the most beautiful places I personally have ever been.

Other highlights of the trip besides the amazing locations, we were able to see 4 different species of lemurs, we had 4 whale sightings and getting to see new born baby sea turtles at the turtle conservation center we visited! Everyone also agreed that the locals in the communities we stayed in made the trip so enjoyable for us all. Multiple times during our trip, people would join us for a bonfire on the beach, and would perform traditional Malagasy music around the fire.

When the 10 days came to an end we all agreed we could happily do another 10 (or 40) on The Spirit of Malala!

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Re-Homing A Scorpion Fish

Towards the end of August our neighbor reached out to our Dive Instructor Kyle about a Scorpion Fish that he had continuously spotted on his beach. Scorpion Fish have enough venom that their stings can be fatal to humans if medical attention is not administered immediately. Our neighbor unfortunately had an incident in the past where one of his workers was stung by a Scorpion Fish (He luckily got the proper medical care quickly enough and made a full recovery) so he understood the danger that Scorpion Fish present.

True to their name, they often can be found hiding amongst stones, sometimes very close to shore. After having such a close call with a Scorpion Fish previously, our neighbor did not want to risk his children or any of his workers potentially getting stung. We were happy that he wanted to relocate the fish, and not just kill it to solve his problem.

Kyle went over to his beach with our boat, the Admiral Express, where he put on the appropriate protective gear and located the fish. With some assistance he was able to lift the fish using a shovel into a bucket of water which was then placed on the boat. Kyle drove the fish out to a reef where he released the Scorpion Fish. Placing the Scorpion Fish on a reef greatly reduces the change of the fish having any contact with a human as opposed to in the shallow rocks of a frequently used beach.

Divers in our area are briefed on the dangers of stone, lion and scorpion fish so by releasing the fish on a far out reef, chances are the only people who will ever have contact with it would be divers. We are excited that we were able to assist our neighbor in this project and hope we can help relocate other Scorpion Fish he locates in the future.

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