We started our Madagascar tour with a long drive from Tana and arrived at Ampijora, where we would spend the next two nights. Ankarafantsika Reserve was full of life and we managed to see most of our main targets including the rare Schlegel’s Asity. Coquerel’s Sifaka was our first Lemur of the tour and quite a memorable moment. A short boat trip also produced one of the top targets for the tour, the Madagascar Fish Eagle. After our short stay we moved west towards Majunga, to take a boat trip on the Betsiboka River Delta to search for the Bernier’s Teal. After quite a bit of searching we were rewarded with two individuals along with plenty of other great species like the Crab Plover. We then drove back to Antananarivo, making an overnight stop on the way. From Tana we then flew to Tulear, the next morning we jumped on a speedboat and charged towards Nose Ve. Here we would walk among the Red-tailed Tropicbirds as they nested, a real treat. A night at a lovely beach hotel was a fantastic place to unwind, although there were still some great things to be seen including Littoral Rock Thrush, and Grey Mouse Lemur on a night walk. The next three nights were spent around Ifaty in search of more endemics. We searched the spiny forests high and low and were rightfully rewarded with some great birds like Thamnornis, Long-tailed Ground-Roller, Running Coua, Madagascar Buttonquail and so much more. We then moved towards Isalo making a number of stops for species like Madagascar Sandgrouse and Madagascar Plover. We made a quick stop at Zombitse forest to get Giant Coua and the very localised Appert’s Greenbul. We continued on after lunch to the grassy plains of the Central Plateau, to the isolated limestone Isalo Massif. This remote area was fairly devoid of birdlife but Madagascar Partridge and Benson’s Rock Thrush were nice additions. The long drive to Ranamofana then started with a stop at Anja Park to break up the journey. This wasn’t any ordinary stop though as we got to watch Ring-tailed Lemurs, arguably Madagascar’s most iconic animal. Four nights in Ranamofana was next and the tough terrain and birding was not easy to navigate but we came away with many great species like the Scaly Ground-Roller, Brown Mesite, Madagascar Pygmy Kingfisher, Madagascar Snipe, Crossley’s Vanga and Velvet Asity. It wasn’t just about the birds though as some of the mammals, reptiles and insects stole the show with great looks at Golden Bamboo Lemur and Brown Mouse Lemur, as well as seeing Madagascar Tree Boa and the crazy looking Giraffe Weavil. Our final destination of the tour was Perinet, where we would spend our last four nights looking for our final targets. This area is home to the legendary Indri, the largest Lemur and although it took us several days, we finally got some good views. The birding was once again tough but we managed a good number of endemics like the Madagascar Rail, Madagascar Owl, Rainforest Scops Owl, Collared Nightjar, Madagascar Blue Pigeon and the Short-legged Ground-Roller. It was a tough three weeks with a lot of walking but as a group we worked hard and were rewarded with so many great birds and other wildlife. We can’t wait to return for another tour in 2026.