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Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Book Review: The Eighth Continent - Life, Death, and Discovery in the Lost World of Madagascar

“All told, biologists estimate that eight out of ten of all living things on Madagascar exist only there in all the world.  How did this come to pass?  Where the island’s distinctive menagerie come from?  When?  Finally, how did its assorted members get there?”

Looking at a map of the world, the island of Madagascar doesn’t seem that far off from the coast of East Africa.  Appearances can be deceiving.  In truth, Madagascar, the world’s fourth largest island, is totally different from not just Africa, but every other place on earth.  It is home to an array of plants and animals found nowhere else on earth.  Its landscapes are dramatically different from those of mainland Africa.  The culture and origins of its people are an enduring mystery. 

Science-writer Peter Tyson tackles that mystery  and others in The Eighth Continent: Life, Death, and Discovery in the Lost World of Madagascar.  Over a series of expeditions, Tyson shadows scientists – foreign and Malagasy – as they explore different aspects of Madagascar’s anthropology and zoology, past and present.  He joins herpetological expeditions, scouring forests for lizards that are almost completely unknown to western science.  He descends into caves with paleontologists to unravel the mystery of Madagascar’s recently extinct megafauna, including pygmy hippos, giant flightless birds, and gorilla-sized lemurs.  He travels with anthropologists who seek to untangle the African-Indonesian-Arabic origins of the Malagasy people.  And yes, this is a book about Madagascar, so there are lemurs.  Tyson meets with a primatologist who has discovered a new species of cyanide-eating lemur, but more importantly explores her efforts to promote a sustainable conservation effort to preserve Madagascar’s vanishing forests.

The book is a fascinating overview of the island and offers an enjoyable primer of its history, from the earliest visits of seafarers to the court of the tyrannical Queen Ranavalona I to the colonial era to Madagascar’s uncertain, tumultuous current political scene.  It explores the diverse – yet surprisingly unified – cultures and customs of the peoples.  Likewise, it offers an accessible introduction to the biological mysteries of the island.  Where did its wildlife come from?  Why is its fauna so different from Africa?  Why are some families so abundant and diverse, and others absent completely?  Why are others, such as iguanas and boas, found here, but with their nearest relatives thousands of miles away?

The best thing about The Eighth Continent is the diverse subjects that it tackles, divided into four sections.  It’s like a treasury of Malagasy lore – there’s a topic for anyone’s interest.  Not into geckos?  Fine, skip that section and read up on fossils and forensic paleontology.  Not into bones?  Check out the chapter on the origins of the Malagasy people.

My least favorite part of the book?  The author.  Throughout the book, but especially in its last chapter, he comes across as a somewhat snide, judgmental narrator, sometimes dripping with disdain towards the people that he meets.  Sometimes he has a flash of awareness and catches and corrects himself.  Other times, he judges on.  It does make it a little distracting and clouds your impression of some of the people he meets and the ideas they espouse.  This is especially problematic in the last section, where the author explores the controversy behind competing proposals on how to have communities manage and protect their local forests.  It makes the reader wonder if they’re getting the full, unbiased view.

Madagascar is a fascinating topic for anyone interested in biology.  Too often, conversations (and zoo exhibits) on the subject are zeroed –in on ring-tailed lemurs and not much else.  The Eighth Continent does something that few other books do, which is provide a comprehensive, expansive view of this bizarre, beautiful land mass and the people and animals who inhabit it.

The Eighth Continent - Life, Death, and Discovery in the Lost World of Madagascar on Amazon.com



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