Blog
We are thrilled to announce a landmark new partnership between the Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute (MRCI) and NGB-Genetics — a collaboration that marks a significant step forward in our mission to protect Madagascar’s extraordinary and irreplaceable biodiversity.
This formal agreement brings together fourteen years of MRCI’s on-the-ground conservation expertise with NGB-Genetics’ cutting-edge scientific technology, creating a powerful alliance for the future of wildlife monitoring in the region.
MRCI has long been at the heart of conservation efforts in the Nosy Be and Nosy Komba region, working hand-in-hand with local communities, government authorities, and academic institutions to safeguard Madagascar’s unique marine and terrestrial ecosystems. This new partnership with NGB-Genetics supercharges that work, bringing world-class tools and scientific rigour to our field operations.
This partnership is about more than equipment — it is about building the scientific infrastructure Madagascar’s wildlife needs to survive and thrive for generations to come.
State-of-the-Art Equipment, Funded by NGB-Genetics
One of the most exciting and immediate outcomes of this partnership is the generous in-kind contribution of field monitoring equipment from NGB-Genetics. This hardware will dramatically expand our capacity to observe and document wildlife across key sites including Ampohana, Lokobe, and Nosy Komba.
Equipment Provided by NGB-Genetics
15 Bushnell Prime L200 Camera Traps
- Low-glow trail cameras with SD cards, enabling 24/7 passive monitoring of mammal and reptile activity across MRCI’s priority forest sites.
- Essential for tracking elusive species including Phaner parienti, the Nosy Be fork-marked lemur.
6 AudioMoth 1.2.0 Acoustic Recorders
- Full-spectrum acoustic monitoring devices, supplied with waterproof cases and SD cards, for the detection and identification of bats, birds, and other acoustically active wildlife — day and night, rain or shine.
These devices represent a transformational upgrade to our field monitoring capabilities. Camera traps allow us to document species presence, behaviour, and activity patterns without disturbance, while the AudioMoth units open up an entirely new dimension of biodiversity monitoring through passive acoustic recording. Together, they will generate a rich, continuous stream of wildlife data from habitats that have historically been difficult and resource-intensive to survey.
All equipment is funded and provided by NGB-Genetics as an in-kind contribution to the partnership — a commitment that reflects their genuine investment in the future of Malagasy biodiversity. We are deeply grateful for their generosity and confidence in MRCI’s field operations.
Introducing Biodiverser: Our New Data Hub
Powered by Biodiverser
NGB-Genetics has provided MRCI with an institutional licence to Biodiverser, a dedicated biodiversity data management platform designed to standardise, integrate, and publish wildlife datasets to international standards. All data collected through our camera traps, acoustic monitors, field surveys, and non-invasive DNA sampling will flow into Biodiverser — creating a unified, searchable, and openly accessible record of Madagascar’s wildlife.
This is a game-changer for how MRCI manages and shares its scientific output. Biodiverser enables us to bring together years of existing field data alongside new data collected under this partnership, organising everything under consistent metadata standards and preparing it for publication to the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). This means our findings will contribute directly to the global scientific record, making Madagascar’s biodiversity data accessible to researchers, conservationists, and policymakers worldwide.
The platform also gives both MRCI and NGB-Genetics shared administrator-level access to all processed datasets, fostering a genuinely collaborative, transparent approach to data stewardship. Sensitive information — such as precise locations of threatened species — will be handled carefully in line with GBIF’s conservation sensitivity guidelines.
What This Means for Madagascar
Northwestern Madagascar is one of the most biodiverse and threatened regions on Earth. The forests, coastlines, and marine habitats of Nosy Be, Nosy Komba, and the surrounding islands are home to species found nowhere else — yet they face mounting pressures from habitat loss, climate change, and extractive industries. Robust, high-quality biodiversity data is not a luxury in this context: it is the foundation upon which effective conservation decisions are made.
With NGB-Genetics’ support, MRCI is now better equipped than ever to generate that data, share it openly, and use it to advocate for the protection of Madagascar’s natural heritage. Alongside the equipment and platform access, NGB-Genetics will also provide expert guidance on non-invasive DNA sampling protocols, opening the door to future environmental DNA (eDNA) and barcoding projects that could further revolutionise how we study and monitor wildlife in the region.
This is just the beginning. We look forward to sharing updates from the field as our new cameras and acoustic recorders are deployed, and as the first datasets begin flowing through Biodiverser. Madagascar’s forests have stories to tell — and now we have the tools to listen.
ABOUT MRCI
The Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute is a registered NGO with fourteen years of experience in the Nosy Be and Nosy Komba region. MRCI’s programmes span marine and terrestrial ecosystem protection, biodiversity monitoring, environmental education, and community development.
ABOUT NGB-GENETICS
NGB-Genetics is a life-sciences company providing molecular genomics tools and field technology to conservation organisations worldwide. Through the Biodiverser platform and direct scientific partnerships, NGB-Genetics supports open-access biodiversity data for global conservation science.
