Study of Secretive Animals: Fosas

Study of Secretive Animals: Fosas — page 1 — trapped Conservation biologist Luke Dollar held his finger up to his lips signaling everyone on his team to be quiet It was a May morning in a forest in Madagascar Huge baobab BEY-oh-bab trees rose overhead like giant umbrellas You follow behind whispered Luke The team tiptoed being careful not to make any loud noises Up ahead was a wire cage about the size of a big suitcase Huddled in the back of the cage was a long brown animal with large amber-colored eyes LOOK CLOSER Madagascar is an island country off the coast of Africa It’s the fourth-largest island on Earth Fosas live only in Madagascar They’re one of the largest native carnivores found there 4

Study of Secretive Animals: Fosas — page 2 — The silence was broken by a deep growl and snort coming from within the cage Then suddenly there was a burst of movement The catlike animal arched its back and thrashed around the cage trying to escape Luke had captured a fosa FOO-sah one of the most secretive and deadly predators in the world Although they look like small panthers fosas are members of their own family of carnivores 5

Study of Secretive Animals: Fosas — page 3 — WILD WHODUNIT Luke’s first introduction to fosas was in 1994 At the time he was tracking lemurs in Madagascar with a local guide One day he picked up a strange signal It came from a tracking collar worn by a lemur named Stanzi But Luke knew the battery in Stanzi’s collar had stopped working years ago He was puzzled Conservation biologist Luke Dollar holding a fosa 6

Study of Secretive Animals: Fosas — page 4 — LOOK CLOSER Lemurs are a kind of tree-dwelling primate They often have pointed snouts and long tails Luke traced the signal to an area in the forest There he found clumps of lemur fur bones and the broken collar on the ground Nearby was a fresh pile of droppings After some detective work Luke figured out what had happened The predator that attacked the animal had clamped down so hard on the collar that it reconnected the battery wires which had broken long ago said Luke His guide gasped A fosa got it 7

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