Global Zoological

 There has been plenty of video an photographic evidence. Now it's time for paper work. The first paper sent to me was simply an agreement between two landowners (the pastor and his neighbor). It defined the borders of their land. It is stamped with an Antanandava stamp, the village near Zahamena national park. It's important to note the land will be in my partners' names.  The other set of paperwork (which was translated in another blog post) is a land deed and log book. Land deed, which will be stamped at a meeting in Moramanga town. Log book, which is stamped.

 The short and easy answer is yes. However due to covid the tour agency is not currently operating, but will be in 2022. The men who bought the property I paid for are in fact legitimate upstanding men. The home page. Trip advisor confirms it's legitimate. Mentioning my main guy, Andry.

 It has now been admitted that the men were near Zahamena national park. However now the question is when were they there? One blog post has already gone into this with some detail, but some key points were missing. Originally my partners came back to me with 7 deforested plots that they had found for sale near Zahamena. They later came back with two forested plots both in Antanifotsy. This is significant as they didn't know which property I would choose, so they couldn't have premade videos to send to me. Evidence from the videos themselves. I chose the 4 hectare plot in Antanifotsy. This is referenced in a few of the videos. They also walked to the 8 hectare plot that I didn't choose. They did not go in, however. They also make reference to saving the forest. They had signs made for the property ahead of time. They could not have anticipated an American wanting to help buy land to make these signs. All evidence suggests this is recent. 

Analysis of the land deed obtained from the pastor (owner) by my partners for the four hectares of land near Zahamena national park. Some translation is choppy due to poor google translating, but it shows what I was told it shows. It will be stamped at a later date during a meeting with the pastor. ***Title: Fanekena Fanpivarotana Tany  "CONSENT SALES LAND " Mprivarotra Andaniny- "MERCHANT ON THE OTHER HAND" Mpividy - "BUYERS" Izay Nifanaraka-  "THAT AGREED...NOW... NEXT" Andrefana- "WEST" ***Bottom page signatures: Mpivartora- "SELLERS" Vavolomebelona- "WITNESS" Mpividy- "BUYERS"

 Some concessions have been made by those arguing against the Zahamena story. However, they still maintain there is no property for sale near Zahamena National park. To better understand where this land is, let's take a look a photos sent of the landscape. The land is said to be North/Northeast of Zahamena national park. Let's take a look at satellite imagery. While it's hard to pinpoint, especially with outdated imagery, the landscape in the Northeast matches the photos sent to me exactly. It is also worth noting that dirt paths lead directly from Antanandava, where my partners departed from, to this area. 

 It has been argued that my partners did not go to the Zahamena area. A previous post explored why that made no sense from many perspectives. One key item left out was the range and scarcity of the Indri lemur. The indri exists in parts of the Eastern rainforests of Madagascar. Indri Range: My guys left from the Capitol of Antananarivo.  With the range of the Indri taken into account, the closest place to have a reasonable chance of seeing Indris is Andasibe-Mantadia nation park East of the Capitol.  However, seeing the Indri was not the goal of the expedition. They could have filmed a more common lemur species even closer to the capitol to try to sell the deal. Instead they came back with many videos of one individual Indri, plus a video of multiple Indris calling in the distance. The video narration also provides evidence that this is a recent video. "We are here to save this Indri's habitat." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3weSEvrhe38 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8...

 The pastor, as I know him, is (was) the landowner of the 4 hectare plot near Zahamena national park. He is having to sell his land due to extreme poverty and the recent death of his sister as I understand it. The pastor. The pastor's farming cabin on the property. The man next to him is likely his younger brother which has been spoken of to me. The pastor's main house is in Antandava village. Signing over his land to my partners. I won't technically own anything as that becomes a major headache. He is also featured surveying the property with the men in videos on my youtube channel.

 Did the men I paid really go to the Zahamena area for the private land nearby? This has been a matter of debate between me an people who don't have lives. This will be a short and sweet post that will prove 100% the men were in the vicinity of Zahamena.  First the most obvious. A picture of one of the men standing by the sign. How do we know that is a current picture? I asked him that morning to send a picture of his hiking gear and he sent a photo of the same outfit. Geolocation on Antanadava bridge. If that isn't enough lets go further. They filmed lake Alaotra in the background as the ascended. This is Madagascar's largest lake and is found next to Zahamena. To end it on a scientific note, the filmed the Madagascan red tree (Diatum Unifoliatum), found only around Zahamena national park and for which the park is named. After all this evidence why fight it? Either I funded an expedition for no reason or they actually went there to buy the land. 

 I have wanted to help buy land to protect in Madagascar since I was in high school and I recently had the opportunity to make this dream come true. I found a man who runs a tour agency and he agreed to get others involved to help make this happen. I suggested land near Zahamena national park and he contacted a guide named Hary near the area to see what plots were available. He initially came back with seven deforested plots but later was able to find two forested plots. One of these plots was 4 hectares and the other 8 hectares. I chose to pay for the 4 hectare plot.  At first, the guide Hary surveyed the land to make sure it was as advertised. He found 1/4 of it deforested but otherwise in great condition. He saw Brown lemurs and heard reports of Indri in the area. We then made the decision to buy the land, which was then owned by a local pastor. My main guy, named Andry, had 10 no trespassing signs made to put up around the property once it was purchased. Andry then left on...