Blue Forests

Madagascar is one of the most mangrove-rich countries in the world, but we know almost nothing about the importance of these forests to terrestrial wildlife. Wildlife of the Mangroves exhibits new research from the Blue Forests team that has revealed the incredible richness of Madagascar’s mangrove birds and lemurs.  

Our Executive Director Alasdair Harris was interviewed by The Daily Star in their article about the Sundarbans, a mangrove forest in Bangladesh. Speaking about the decision recently made by Bangladeshi and Indian authorities to build a vast coal fired power station in close proximity to the Sundarbans, Alasdair Harris said: "While Bangladesh has an urgent need ...

Recent research by Dr Charlie Gardner is covered in the Mongabay article 'In search of Madagascar’s “marine primates'.

New research by Blue Ventures' Scientific Advisor Dr Charlie Gardner is discussed in The Conversation: Madagascar’s ‘swamp lemurs’ have been documented for the first time

Madagascar’s mangroves, so vital for maintaining fisheries and storing carbon, may also be much more important than we thought for conserving the country’s lemurs Madagascar is considered by many to be the world’s top conservation priority, since so many of its native plants and animals exist nowhere else on Earth. Most wildlife conservation efforts are ...

This week sees both International Forests Day and World Water Day - what better way to explore the intertwined nature of the two than celebrating mangroves - incredible areas where the forest meets the sea. This year we’re reflecting on the progress made by communities in the Bay of Assassins, Madagascar, who are leading the way ...

Blue Ventures is pleased to announce - in partnership with our collaborators at the University of Antananarivo, the WWF Madagascar West Indian Ocean Programme Office and the US Geological Survey - the publication of a paper that maps and quantifies mangrove loss in Madagascar, as well as mangrove characteristics at four key conservation sites. Using data ...

Eighty-four members of our team from all of Blue Ventures’ offices and field programmes in Madagascar attended, along with representatives from our London office and our newest colleague from our evolving partnership project in Comoros met in Andavadoaka, Madagascar for our sixth annual conference. Alongside three days of discussions and workshops to define the collective ...

At the end of September, four Blue Ventures team members attended the 8th Meeting of the Blue Carbon Initiative’s Scientific Working Group, in Zanzibar, and presented what we've learnt through our Blue Forests programme. With a specific focus on the potential of blue carbon in Africa, this 3 day meeting brought together 23 world experts ...

New research has produced a contemporary map, quantified and contextualised loss, characterised ecological variability, and provided the first estimates of the carbon stocks in Madagascar’s vast Mahajamba Bay, one of Africa’s largest and most pristine mangrove ecosystems. Mangrove ecosystems are found in more than 120 countries throughout the tropics, providing critical goods and services to ...