Madagascar Dry Forest Food Web
Terrestrial
Tropical & Subtropical Dry Broadleaf Forests
Western Madagascar
Description
Madagascar's western dry deciduous forests support extraordinary endemism including over 90% endemic plant species. Lemurs fill ecological niches occupied by monkeys, woodpeckers, and squirrels on other continents. The aye-aye uses elongated fingers to extract insect larvae from trees, filling a niche similar to woodpeckers.
Trophic Pyramid
Level 5
Decomposers
Termites
Tropical fungi
Millipedes
3 species
Level 4
Tertiary Consumers
Fossa
Madagascar crowned eagle
2 species
Level 3
Secondary Consumers
Aye-aye
Madagascar ground boa
Madagascar harrier-hawk
3 species
Level 2
Primary Consumers
Ring-tailed lemur
Giant jumping rat
Coquerel's sifaka
3 species
Level 1
Producers
Baobab trees
Deciduous hardwoods
Alluaudia
3 species
Apex Predators
Tertiary Consumers
Secondary Consumers
Primary Consumers
Producers
Key Interactions
- Fossa is the apex predator and primary predator of lemurs
- Aye-ayes use echolocation-like tapping to locate insect larvae inside wood
- Baobab trees store water in their trunks, providing dry-season resources for multiple species
- Lemurs disperse seeds of endemic trees, maintaining forest diversity