Three forces are combining with deadly effect on the Indian Ocean island, which is incalculably rich in wildlife but impoverished in basic infrastructure.
This picture taken on January 20, 2009 shows a newly born Madagascan lemur, Propithecus coronatus, an en-dangered species named Tahina, at Besancon Zoo, eastern France.
In both cases, the researchers have evoked scenarios of Cretaceous vicariance, followed by endemic species radiation within Madagascar and subsequent dispersal from Madagascar to other areas.
Based on a study that included a single undescribed Malagasy species in the spider genus Anelosimus, investigators found that this species could be grouped within a clade of NewWorld social species.