Henkel’s Leaf-tailed Gecko

Reptiles > Gekkonidae & Geckos

Henkel’s Leaf-tailed Gecko (Uroplatus henkeli) is one of the undisputed masters of evolutionary camouflage in the reptile world, an ancient nocturnal lizard endemic exclusively to the fragmented primary forests of northern Madagascar. Measuring up to a foot in...

Yellow-headed Day Gecko

Reptiles > Gekkonidae & Day Geckos

The Yellow-headed Day Gecko (Phelsuma klemmeri), affectionately known to herpetologists as the ‘neon day gecko,’ is universally celebrated as one of the most stunningly colored and visually dazzling reptiles on Earth. Strictly endemic to a tiny, fragmented...

Madagascar Big-headed Turtle

Reptiles > Turtles

The Madagascar Big-headed Turtle (Erymnochelys madagascariensis), known locally as the ‘Rere,’ is an ancient, critically endangered side-necked turtle endemic to the western waterways of Madagascar. As the sole living representative of the genus...

Suicide Palm

Plants > Palms

The Suicide Palm (Tahina spectabilis), discovered only in 2006 on a remote limestone plateau in northwestern Madagascar, is one of the most astonishing botanical discoveries of the 21st century. Growing to a majestic height of nearly 60 feet with colossal fan-shaped...

Burmese Star Tortoise

Reptiles > Tortoises

The Plowshare Tortoise (Astrochelys yniphora), known locally as the ‘Angonoka,’ is widely regarded as the rarest and most beautiful tortoise species on planet Earth. Endemic to a minuscule tract of dry deciduous forest around Baly Bay in northwestern...