Rainforests of the Atsinanana

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The Rainforests of the Atsinanana: A Unique Biodiversity Haven in Eastern Madagascar

The Rainforests of the Atsinanana, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007, represent a significant portion of the eastern part of Madagascar. This designation encompasses 13 distinct areas within six national parks, each playing a crucial role in preserving the island's unique biodiversity.

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UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site

The Rainforests of the Atsinanana comprise six national parks distributed along the eastern part of the island. These relict forests are critically important for maintaining ongoing ecological processes necessary for the survival of Madagascar’s unique biodiversity, which reflects the island’s geological history. Having completed its separation from all other land masses more than 60 million years ago, Madagascar’s plant and animal life evolved in isolation. The rainforests are inscribed for their importance to both ecological and biological processes as well as their biodiversity and the threatened species they support. Many species are rare and threatened especially primates and lemurs.

UNESCO Justification of the World Heritage Site

Criterion (ix): The Rainforests of the Atsinanana are relict forests, largely associated with steeper terrain along the eastern escarpment and mountains of Madagascar. The protected areas included in this serial property have become critically important for maintaining ongoing ecological processes necessary for the survival of Madagascar's unique biodiversity. This biodiversity reflects Madagascar's geological history and geographic placement. It is the world's fourth largest island and has been separated from all other land masses for at least 60-80 million years and thus most of its plant and animal life has evolved in isolation. These forests have also offered important refuge for species during past periods of climate change and will be essential for the adaptation and survival of species in the light of future climate change.

Criterion (x): The level of endemism within the property is approximately 80 to 90 percent for all groups, and endemic families and genera are common. Madagascar is among the top countries known for their megadiversity and features an extraordinarily high number (circa 12,000) of endemic plant species. The property is also globally significant for fauna, especially primates, with all five families of Malagasy primates, all endemic lemur families, seven endemic genera of Rodentia, six endemic genera of Carnivora, as well as several species of Chiroptera represented. Of the 123 species of non-flying mammals in Madagascar (72 of which are on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species), 78 occur within the property. The critical importance of the property is underlined by the fact that deforestation has left eastern Madagascar with only 8.5 percent of its original forests and the property protects key areas of this remaining habitat.

Encyclopedia Record: Rainforests of the Atsinanana

The Rainforests of the Atsinanana is a World Heritage Site that was inscribed in 2007 and consists of 13 specific areas in six national parks in the eastern part of Madagascar:Marojejy National Park Masoala National Park Zahamena National Park Ranomafana National Park Andringitra National Park Andohahela National Park

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IUCN World Heritage Outlook

The 2025 Conservation Outlook on Rainforests of the Atsinanana reports the following assessment:

Source: International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) · View assessment