---
title: "Ducking disaster — what storm-battered Madagascar teaches us about conservation resilience"
description: "Madagascar is often reduced to headlines of disaster as cyclones intensify and ecosystems come under pressure. But that is only part of the story. From a drained lake that nearly wiped out an endemic duck, to storm-affected coastal habitats, this is also a story of resilience, community-led recovery and the practical lessons Madagascar offers on adapting to a changing climate."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "ROVING REPORTERS"
author: "Kemunto Ogutu"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/kemunto-ogutu/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-09-18-ducking-disaster-what-storm-battered-madagascar-teaches-us-about-conservation-resilience/"
published: "2026-09-18T06:57:23"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 1815
---

# Ducking disaster — what storm-battered Madagascar teaches us about conservation resilience

> Madagascar is often reduced to headlines of disaster as cyclones intensify and ecosystems come under pressure. But that is only part of the story. From a drained lake that nearly wiped out an endemic duck, to storm-affected coastal habitats, this is also a story of resilience, community-led recovery and the practical lessons Madagascar offers on adapting to a changing climate.

By Kemunto Ogutu · Published 18 September 2026, 08:57 SAST

## Key points
- Cyclones Fytia and Gezani devastated Madagascar communities and fragile habitats in February 2026 — Gezani alone affected ~424,000 people and damaged conservation infrastructure from Baly Bay to inland wetlands.
- The Madagascar pochard narrowly avoided another extinction after Lake Sofia began draining in 2024; captive breeding plus a community-built dam have helped the duck and the wetland recover.
- Conservationists are combining old and new: community-led livelihood programmes with hi-tech tools — drones, thermal imaging and AI — to monitor species and restore mangroves, despite logistical and seasonal limits.
- The wider lesson: sustainable conservation in Madagascar hinges on empowering local communities and negotiating trade-offs with livelihoods (think rice vs. marshland) — a story of resilience often missing from disaster headlines. Read on for on-the-ground detail.

## Content

When Cyclone Gezani hit Madagascar on 10 February 2026, much of the landscape – and thousands of people – had only just started to recover from the ravaging impact of Tropical Cyclone Fytia 10 days earlier.

Gezani was more destructive. According to Madagascar’s National Bureau for Risk and Disaster Management, 424,000 people (more than 105,000 households) across 25 districts were affected. Fifty-nine people were killed and 804 injured.

While people and property bore the brunt of the storm, the impact on already fragile ecosystems – and the species that depend on them – soon began to emerge. Endangered wildlife was not spared.

At Baly Bay, in northwest Madagascar, the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust protects one of the last breeding populations of the critically endangered ploughshare tortoise. Aaron Hawkins, Durrell’s country director in Madagascar, recalls the aftermath of the cyclones:

“It disabled all our communication infrastructure. There was no internet or cellphone service available, so we had a really hard time even understanding whether our staff and the centre were okay.”

Fortunately, all their staff and animals were safe, although homes, property, captive centre infrastructure and trees had been destroyed.

Despite it being cyclone season in Madagascar, Hawkins says they did not expect the storm to hit this region. “The area it hit is not one that typically experiences cyclones. The east and south are much more exposed because of the currents,” he explains.

![After Cyclone Fytia tore through Baly Bay, communities were left grappling with
widespread destruction and an uncertain road to recovery. (Photo: Durrell Wildlife
Conservation Trust)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/kZLRc9l5gfNCOoOC3WZRYoRbnuM=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/RovingRep-Madagascar-storms2_159024.jpg)

*After Cyclone Fytia tore through Baly Bay, communities were left grappling with widespread destruction and an uncertain road to recovery. (Photo: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)*

After the cyclone, field assessments showed about 2,000 households in Baly Bay had been affected, with widespread losses to homes, fishing equipment and livelihoods. Recovery efforts moved quickly, helping families rebuild boats and houses while turning to fast-growing crops in vegetable gardens for immediate income. At the same time, attention turned to the surrounding landscape, where the storm’s impact on already fragile ecosystems was only beginning to take shape.

### The Madagascar pochard

Further inland, a separate crisis had already been unfolding long before Gezani arrived.

In February 2024, heavy storms tore through Lake Sofia, widening a narrow outlet into a gaping breach that began to drain the lake. Within weeks, much of the water had disappeared, endangering the fragile wetland ecosystem that both people and wildlife depend on.

With the water gone, the Madagascar pochard – the world’s rarest duck – had yet another brush with extinction. Declared extinct in the 1990s, the species was unexpectedly rediscovered in 2006.

Since then, Felix Razafindrajao, coordinator of the Madagascar pochard project, has spent the past two decades working with communities around Lake Sofia to restore the species.

To prevent its extinction, Durrell runs a captive breeding programme, collecting eggs from the wild and releasing hatchlings back into nature. But Hawkins says even this “simple” step is anything but easy in Madagascar. Reaching remote sites such as Lake Sofia can take days from the regional capital, with poor or nonexistent roads that become impassable in the rain, making fieldwork highly unpredictable.

![Despite ongoing conservation challenges, the population has grown to the hundreds.
(Photo: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/EOsc7laOGSIT6BcxOC8ahhOyY3g=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/RovingRep-Madagascar-storms1_821786.jpg)

*Despite ongoing conservation challenges, the population has grown to the hundreds. (Photo: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)*

![The Madagascar pochard (Aythya innotata), the world’s rarest duck, was rediscovered
in 2006 after being presumed extinct. (Photo: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/32c9kzp5B33tOLC9jdkAyaT-wrY=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/RovingRep-Madagascar-storms3_251666.jpg)

*The Madagascar pochard (Aythya innotata), the world’s rarest duck, was rediscovered in 2006 after being presumed extinct. (Photo: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)*

He recalls how, last year, an international bird and duck expert arrived during a political crisis and spent nearly two months living at the lake with staff, helping transport 15 eggs back to the regional capital on rough, remote roads. Despite the conditions, most of the eggs hatched successfully, producing new ducklings of the critically endangered species. “It was such a reality check that even something as simple as egg collection becomes complex in the face of weak infrastructure, political instability and extreme remoteness.”

![Transporting Madagascar pochard eggs often involves travelling across remote and
rough terrain in the Sofia Region of Madagascar. (Photo: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/_3SqEvEbUuX1FwU2cLraGOfmAcY=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/RovingRep-Madagascar-storms4_972432.jpg)

*Transporting Madagascar pochard eggs often involves travelling across remote and
rough terrain in the Sofia Region of Madagascar. (Photo: Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)*

Despite these challenges, Felix says he has seen the landscape change and the ducks multiply into the hundreds.

“When we started working in Lake Sofia in 2015, the local communities knew nothing about the conservation of the lake’s biodiversity,” he recalls. “We had to sensitise the community and navigate challenges around land issues related to the restoration of the lake.”

He says that things have since changed, and communities have embraced the conservation efforts.

“So when the lake collapsed, we first discussed with the local communities and authorities to know what next steps they wanted to take,” he says. The community decided that building a dam would be the best solution to help refill the lake during the rainy season. The project was made possible through financial support from Oppenheimer Generations Research and Conservation.

Today, Felix says the dam has replenished the lake close to its previous depth. The ecosystem is showing signs of revival. Fish populations have rebounded, and the Madagascar pochard has followed. This year, he notes, breeding success has improved, with higher hatching rates recorded at the lake.

### Eyes in the sky

As traditional fieldwork continues to strain under these accessibility pressures, conservationists are turning to new tools. Durrell’s Drone Project coordinator, Tsito Rakotozoely, has pioneered monitoring lemurs using thermal imaging, piloting drones to detect and count the Alaotran gentle lemur, a highly threatened species living in the marshes of Lake Alaotra.

“We are now able to count the species population using AI combined with drone imagery,” he says. “There are also forest restoration and reforestation projects in Lake Alaotra, Lake Sofia and parts of the mangroves in Baly Bay.”

He says that, in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment, two sites have particularly benefited from custom-built heavy-lift drones that restore mangroves and littoral forests. The drones, capable of carrying up to 45kg of seeds and reaching up to 5km into inaccessible terrain, have enabled the restoration of 200 hectares in the southwest and 100 hectares on the west coast. This approach is planned to be deployed in Baly Bay. “Another model of drones equipped with LiDAR and RGB sensors is also used for germination assessment, growth estimation, mapping and forest surveillance.”

But this too has its limitations. “It was a challenging project because there are two species of mangrove plants, and only one can be dropped with drones. The seeds are only available for a month in one season, so we have to be on time and on site at the right moment.”

The drones also help in monitoring wildfires, one of the most persistent challenges during the dry season, when the scale and remoteness of protected areas make response difficult.

### Living with the landscape

Even with technological advances, Hawkins believes communities remain central to long-term conservation. Sustainable solutions cannot be achieved through policy alone but must involve the people living alongside these ecosystems.

He explains that these communities face many pressures, including poverty, livelihoods and migration, all of which shape how natural habitats are used and changed over time.

Brinah Razafiharimiando, the community conservation coordinator, oversees livelihoods and community engagement. He explains that, beyond conservation, they work to strengthen financial independence through promoting Village Savings and Loan Associations and income-generating activities such as sustainable fishing in Baly Bay and beekeeping in Lake Sofia.

They also train local leaders in natural resource governance to improve how resources are managed and environmental laws are enforced, and provide basic infrastructure to support work on the ground.

“We hope that if we continue to do our restoration work, all of the species of plants and animals will live in harmony, and of course with local communities,” says Fidy Ralainasolso, Durrell’s protected areas coordinator. While it is no easy goal, he believes it is attainable if communities and conservationists work together.

For Hawkins, success would mean communities adopting climate-smart agriculture and strengthening their own financial systems. “Seeing a more stable community that has the resources it needs and feels less pressure to exploit the protected areas they live alongside,” he says. “That would be an incredible thing that I think we’re very likely to see in five years – not everywhere in Madagascar, but in some of these key intervention sites where we’ve been working.”

### Trade-offs

In places like Lake Alaotra, Madagascar’s largest lake and a major rice-growing region, that balance is far more difficult to achieve.

Rice cultivation depends heavily on land and water use that overlaps with fragile wetland ecosystems. It is also home to a critically endangered lemur species that relies entirely on marsh reeds for survival and cannot survive anywhere else.

“On the one hand, Madagascar needs its rice, and farmers are under immense pressure to expand their fields,” Hawkins explains. “However, as marshland is converted for cultivation, the natural habitat for this species is lost, placing strain on the broader ecosystem.”

Working through that dilemma has required close coordination with government ministries and careful negotiation with communities. “We have to work very carefully and diplomatically around the economic pressures and the challenges of protecting endangered species and habitats, especially in shared spaces where families depend on natural resources for their livelihoods.”

Clear communication, Tsito says, is essential. “We need to communicate more with the local community to keep them safe. Conservation doesn’t mean that we will steal their field or something like that.” He adds: “We are here to protect the species and to help communities, not the opposite of that.”

### The missing narrative

Hawkins says Madagascar is often reduced to stories of natural disasters, poverty and famine. “Those realities exist, but they are not the whole story. It really is an incredible island with so much to offer.”

“The Malagasy people are incredibly humble, but also incredibly resourceful and resilient,” he says. “When disasters hit, what you don’t always see in the reporting is how communities come together to manage those situations.”

The same applies to conservation storytelling. Too often, he says, attention focuses on environmental decline or harmful practices without showing how people respond on the ground. “Alongside the negative impacts, communities are mobilising, women are organising, and local groups are stepping in to counter those pressures in really practical ways.”

Fidy believes this missing historical context is part of the problem. “A long time ago, in Madagascar, we respected the environment. We respected biodiversity,” he says. “But maybe because of poverty, the younger generations started to destroy it, because they don’t fully understand the importance of our biodiversity or what our ancestors used to do.”

“We talk about what is happening now,” he adds, “but we forget what happened before.”

Yet, while cyclones, collapsing systems and fragile ecosystems continue to reshape Madagascar’s landscapes, communities and conservationists are still holding the line – working to rebuild, restore and adapt in their wake. **DM**

*Kemunto Ogutu is a Roving Reporters correspondent based in Kenya. This story was produced in collaboration with the independent research engagement agency, Jive Media Africa, with funding from Oppenheimer Generations and Research and Conservation.*