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| Geography Madagascar is located in the Indian Ocean 250 miles off the eastern coast of Africa across the Mozambique Channel, just south of the equator. Over 1000 miles (1580 km) long and 350 miles (570 km) wide, Madagascar is the world's fourth largest island. Its most prominent feature would have to be the steep mountain range paralleling the entire eastern coast. A nature-lover's paradise, this sparsely-populated land occupies an area more than twice the size of Great Britain, and it is crisscrossed by no less than six different micro-climates! Madagascar's highest mountain, Mt. Maromokofro, towers an impressive 9450 feet (2876 m) over the island's northernmost regions. The eastern slopes of Mt. Maromokofro and her numerous companions give way to a narrow coastal plain. There, you will find mighty rivers, awe-inspiring waterfalls, and the remains of an ancient rainforest. |
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Calling Madagascar an island almost seems unfair. Deciduous forests, crystalline lakes, massive caverns, and savanna grassland dot the broad western plains, and the southern tip of the island is covered with a magnificent desert. This Eden-like garden of riches is filled with so much diversity in life and in geography that it is like no other island anywhere on Earth. Indeed, every expedition into her mountains, her rain forests, her river valleys, her coastal plains, her grasslands, her caverns, and her deserts leads to the discovery of some new plant or animal species. It is no exaggeration to claim that this micro-continent, as some have called it, offers limitless opportunities for exploration. Madagascar's climate is tropical, with two seasons. During the rainy season (December-April), the island receives between 12 and 340 inches (30-355 cm) of rainfall annually. During the dry season (May-November), average midday temperatures range from 77 degrees F (25 degrees C) in the highlands and 86 degrees F (30 degrees C) on the coast. Along the Eastern coastal plains, high humidity is tempered by almost-constant ocean breezes. |
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