Madagascar Volunteer

Research & Conservation Institute

   
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Mitsios Boat Trip

 

2020 wasn’t a great year for anyone, so to combat this the MRCI staff and volunteers decided a trip was needed to get everyone in the right mood for 2021. Piling the Spirit of Malala high with diving gear, cylinders, cameras, and food we set off to the remote Mitsio Islands, 70 kilometres to the north of Nosy Be, for a weekend of diving and exploration.

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A 5-hour journey from Turtle Cove, the Mitsios are comprised of around a dozen islands, with several of these being grouped together as the 4 Brothers. Each of the Brothers is made up of towering grey basalt cliffs topped with lush vegetation, with a huge array of seabirds wheeling and circling around them. With the sun already sitting low in the sky as we arrived, we decided our first stop would be Nosy Ankarea, where we snorkelled along the local reef system and walked among the baobabs growing just a few dozen metres back from the shoreline. As we returned to the Spirit of Malala the seabirds were replaced by Madagascan Fruit Bats, who came gliding off the cliffs in search of fruit and flowers to feed on, their orange-tinged fur seemingly glowing with the light of the setting sun.

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Following a top-class meal prepared by Chef Fred and a good night’s sleep on Grand Mitsio, the only permanently inhabited island in the group, we set off early the next morning for our first day of diving. Arriving at the first site, one of the 4 Brothers, we started off with a deep dive for those qualified and began exploring the reefs and corals that had been so highly rated by everyone we spoke to. And they did not disappoint.

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For several of our divers this was their first ever attempt at the Giant Stride entry and following a little bit of coaching from the staff they were entering the water like pros. Everywhere you looked there was a different amazing encounter, with huge schools of fish at every site, dozens of stingrays, turtles around every turn, and even a few wary Octopus peeking out of their dens to watch us pass by. The Mitsios had something for everyone and being an avid lover of macro life and photography, they gave me the opportunity to tick off one of my top marine wildlife encounters, with a huge Peacock Mantis Shrimp happy to pose for me in his burrow towards the end of our 2nd dive.

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With an evening spent eating a traditional Malagasy meal of rice and fresh fish, with a couple of cold beers to go with it, we bunked down for our last night in the Mitsios. In the morning we set off for Nosy Toloho, the site of our final dive of the weekend, to finish off our trip in style. Nosy Toloho provided us with a fantastic wall dive where schools of surgeonfish and barracuda swirled around, and huge Longfin Spadefish trailed us throughout the length of the dive, chasing our bubbles and bumping our fins.

With the kit and cameras packed, Captain Abdou turned the Spirit of Malala around and set the course home, but not before we were treated to a final meal of freshly caught mackerel and a last cold beer. The Mitsios did not disappoint and from the seabirds to the shrimp it was a fantastic trip that I would recommend to anyone who visits this amazing part of the world.

 

Author: Pádraig O'Grady
Photos: Chris Scarffe & Michel Strogoff/ Copyright Madagascar Film & Photography, and Pádraig O`Grady

 

Check out our Diving School and Volunteer Island Outreach Program

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Recent Posts

  • Marine Conservation Team: Solly
  • Volunteering in Madagascar during a Pandemic
  • Mitsios Boat Trip
  • Dive Certification Well Earned
Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute

2 days ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Ana! Our volunteer of the week🎉Always motivated and be a role model of everyone 🌸Congratulations!! Who’s next? 💥Volunteering with us, click link on bio!#volunteering #madagascarvolunteer #volunteeroftheweek #conservation #motivated #rolemodel #communityinvolvement #volunteeringisfun ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute

5 days ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Thanks again all for the funds that we received up until now ❤️ Solly has worked so hard to get where he is and we need your support now to achieving his final dream as a PADI Instructor in his professional diving career! 🎉If you feel like you could support Solly, click on the link below to donate! 🙏🏼🎉https://gofund.me/176e591d#madagascar #madagascarvolunteer #solly’sdream #fundraiser #padiinstructor #PADIIDC2023 #paditv #localmarinebiologist #marineresearch #padiprofessional #futurecareer #gofundme ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute is with Conservation Diver.

5 days ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Ecological Monitoring Program for Invertebrates training are on its way with our volunteers!During the EMP course you’ll learn how to monitor the health and biodiversity of reefs over time and compare the different areas by analysing indicator species of fish and invertebrates, as well as the substate composition. Join us here on Marine Program and get your @conservationdiverofficial qualifications and help us understand more about the health of the Indian Ocean reefs while you are in Madagascar, click link on bio!#trainingmarineconservationist #marineprogram #monitorhealthofreef #invertebrates #fish #substrate #madagascar #madagascarvolunteer #conservation #indianocean ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute

1 week ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Drake!! Our volunteer of the week 🎉He has been an exceptional team player among the volunteers and staff.And we want to congratulate him also for completed his @paditv PADI Dive Master Course while he volunteering in Marine program. He always saying that be a dive master is always one of his dreams that now comes true and we wish Drake good luck in his next adventure 🎉Volunteering with us? Click link on bio!#madagascar #madagascarvolunteer #marineprogram #conservation #paditv #padidivemaster #divemaster #trainingmarineconservationist ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute is at Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute.

2 weeks ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Thanks all for the funds that we received up until now ❤️ Solly has worked so hard to get where he is and we need your support now to achieving his final dream as a PADI Instructor in his professional diving career! 🎉If you feel like you could support Solly, click on the link on our bio or below to donate! 🙏🏼🎉https://gofund.me/176e591d#madagascar #madagascarvolunteer #solly’sdream #fundraiser #padiinstructor #PADIIDC2023 #paditv #localmarinebiologist #marineresearch #padiprofessional #futurecareer #gofundme ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute

2 weeks ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Never too late to celebrating International Woman’s Day 2023!!As an appreciation for the women all over the world, here in Madagascar we are thrive to got an experienced how they celebrating the day.Our volunteers and staff presented in the Ampangorina village to support the community event!All the ladies from our camp get well dressed in malagasy traditional which they called sarong and helped painted our faceThen all the women did a parade around the village while after that they do have a dance battle in between the community which is makes its fun 🎉🥳And special partaking of the daughter’s, @daughtersofthedeepofficial in the village where they grew up, Flaria, Olivian, MJ and Eros are proud with each progress that they have been made, all the effort and support from the community for sure be a great motivation for all the young women in the village to pursue their career in every passion and innovation towards equality!Finished all the event with traditional malagasy BBQ with all the volunteers, staff and the daughter’s with 30% funds that we’ve got will be directly go to the donation @daughtersofthedeepofficial 🎉Thanks everyone!!!Volunteering with us, click link on bio!#madagascarvolunteer #madagascar #happyinternationalwoman’sday #women #equality #cultural #malagasy #communityproject #communityevent #daughtersofthedeepofficial #greatsupport ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute

3 weeks ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Teaching program!!Having the opportunity to fuel this interest, taking English grammar and conversational lessons within local schools and communities.Also will have the experience teach the energetic children and handfuls keen adults, in the faint hope that it will improve their likelihood of future employment, or simply feed their hunger to learnBeing received by the community with warm appreciation, not as a foreigner, but as a sister, brother and a friend of life! 🎉Volunteering with us on teaching, click link on bio! ✨🎉#madagascar #madagascarvolunteer #teachingenglish #englishclass #forlocal #communitydevelopment #student #childrenenthusiast #conservation #makeadifference #goodimpact ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute

3 weeks ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Ecobricks update!! 🎉We are happy to see all the plastic that we collected while we do beach clean up everyday can be used for building a walls of the bottles!According to UNICEF (2011), less than half of the municipal waste, or rubbish, that is produced in Madagascar each year is collected. Of this, only 3.5% is composted, whilst the remaining 405,173 tons is dumped in landfills. As for the uncollected waste (over 419,000 tons of it per year), this is left untreated within the environment, causing serious sanitary problems and environmental damageWe aims to improve the lives of local people and reduce environmental damage by reducing the amount of waste (both biodegradable and non-degradable) which is thrown away. Join us click link on bio ⭐️#madagascarvolunteer #madagascar #volunteer #volunteering #forlocal #forenvironment #ecobricks #wallofbottles #constructionproject #saveplanet #saveocean #sustainable #plastic ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute

4 weeks ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
Congratulations Santiago for being our volunteer of the week! 🥳Thank you for all the hard work and commitment that you put through our forest and construction program and lastly but not least for being always motivated around camp🎉 #madagascarvolunteer #madagascar #volunteeroftheweek #forestprogram #constructionprogram #conservation #volunteering #volunteeringisfun #appreciationpost ... See MoreSee Less

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Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute

1 month ago

Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute
We want to share great news with everyone 🥳 our construction project with the @labcharity Madagascar Sunrise clinic has come to the happy ending 🌈 We started the project early February and finally ready for opening in March 🌞 Without the support of our volunteers and staff we wouldn’t have been able to be a part of the amazing project! Thanks to every hand that helped to make this happen 🙏🏼🌎✨Volunteering with us to make a difference, click link on bio! ⭐️#volunteering #madagascarvolunteer #volunteeringisfun #madagascar #nosybe #communityproject #constructionvolunteer #clinic #disability #forkids #forlocal #forcommunity #conservation #dreamteam #constructionproject ... See MoreSee Less

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Contact Us

Madagascar Office: Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute, Home Sakalava, Rue R Tsiomeko, Hell-Ville, Nosy Be, Madagascar
Phone: +261 32 50 891 57
Office Hours: Please take note of the time zone differences when contacting us.
Email: volunteer@madagascarvolunteer.com

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Teaching | Marine Conservation | Forest Conservation | Combinations

Disclaimer:  We reserve the right to change our Volunteer Programs at any time, without prior notice.