Raoul Manten
The World...
through my Lens!
I love to travel and while doing so try to capture powerful images. With these photo's I would like to tell the stories behind diminishing tribal cultures and wildlife. And more important share the beauty of what the world has to offer!
On my blog you can read about the (sometimes unexpected) encounters I had during my trips around the world, with nature and the fascinating people living on the different continents.
My basic equipment is a Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II digital SLR camera with a 70-200mm zoom objective, which I sometimes replace by a 24-70mm wide angle lens.
Search
Additional pages
- My Homepage
- Borneo (Malaysia)
- Costa Rica
- Cuba
- Ecuador
- Ethiopia
- Galapagos
- Guatemala
- Madagascar
- Nepal
- Nicaragua
- Panama
Find me on...
Posts I like
-
-
BUSH CRICKET
Ephippiger ephippiger
©d_smetsSpecies of this genus are mainly present in Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic,...
-
ANDEAN COCK-OF-THE-ROCK
Rupicola peruvianus
© Joe Brown—-
Andean Cock-of-the-rock (Rupicola peruvianus)
The ...
-
-
-
-
so you shouldnt have a problem smiling .
-
Tag Results
10 posts tagged madagascar
Malagasy Girl with the Mona Lisa Smile effect.
This photo was taken in November 2009 in the small local village of Andasy near Andringitra National Park (located in south-central Madagascar) where this teenage girl with intriguing dark eyes displayed a straight face reminding me on the Mona Lisa smile effect, which tricks the eye into thinking the expression is changing.
Her face appears to shift depending where a person focuses their gaze. If her eyes are stared at, it appears she has an angry expression. But if the onlooker shifts their gaze to her mouth, then this emotion seems to disappear and a more subtle neutral embodiment shows, like the hidden smile in Mona Lisa’s mouth. When you look directly on the mouth in the painting, you see the fine details, the smile disappears and there is only a neutral expression.
Madagascar Ring-tailed Lemur.
This photo was taken in November 2009 in Andringitra National Park near the village of Andasy (located in south-central Madagascar) where this female lemur is keeping a close watch on the group while overseeing the Tsaranoro Valley which is surrounded by the steep granite cliffs of the Andringitra Mountain range.
The ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) is endemic to the island of Madagascar, living in groups of up to 30 individuals and highly social. It is also female dominant, a trait common among lemurs. To keep warm and reaffirm social bonds, groups will huddle together forming a lemur ball.
The ring-tailed lemur will also sunbathe, sitting upright facing its underside, with its thinner white fur towards the sun. Like other lemurs, this species relies strongly on its sense of smell and marks its territory with scent glands. The males perform a unique scent marking behavior called spur marking and will participate in stink fights by impregnating their tail with their scent and wafting it at opponents.
Andringitra National Park has been managed by WWF since 1993 and it was declared a national park in 1999. Over an area of 31160 hectars it is characterised by mountains, including Pic Boby, which at 2658 meters is Madagascar’s highest accessible peak.
The park is subdivided into three ecosystems: low altitude rainforest, montane mountain forest and high altitude vegetation. Andringitra National Park is an important central link in the longest unbroken chain of rainforest remaining in Madagascar. It stretches 180km from Ranomafana National Park in the north connecting to Peak Ivohibe in the south.
Andringitra has possibly the highest biodiversity of any park in Madagascar. The complex mixture of lifestyles, methods of cultivation and lifestock raising left its mark on the landscape. Much of lowland humid forests surrounding the park have been cleared for farming methods such as paddy rice and slash-and-burn agriculture. WWF as well as other organisations work closely together with local residents to conserve the forest.
Portrait of a Malagasy girl wrapped in warm blankets.
This photo was taken in November 2009 near Ambalavao (small village in the Southern province of Fianarantsoa, Madagascar), where these young Malagasy girl covered herself with warm blankets after the sun started to fall behind the horizon.
Green Colored Panther Chameleon Lizard.
This photo was taken in November 2009 at Peyrieras also known as Madagascar exotic in Marozevo (a couple of miles east of Antananarivo), where this unique reptile has a fascinating ability of hiding (camouflage is a method of crypsis) by change its vibrant colors to adapt to its surroundings.
The Panther Chameleon Lizard (furcifer pardalis), can rotate its stereoscopic eyes and focus separately to observe two different objects simultaneously. This lets their eyes move independently from each other gives them a full 360-degree arc of vision around their body.
Portrait of a Malagasy Girl with her little Brother.
This photo was taken in November 2009 near the city of Antsirabe (South of Antananarivo, Madagascar), where these young Malagasy girl made a guest appearance with her little brother in front of my camera.
Insect Eating Madagascar Pitcher Plant.
This photo was taken in November 2009 at the Canal des Pangalanes lake district (Toamasia east coast region of Madagascar), where this insect eating plant can be found in abundance around the lake, within walking distance of a small ecolodge called “Bushhouse”.
This plant species (Nepenthes Madagascariensis) is unique to Madagascar and produces impressive pitchers that collect water. Insects and other small creatures can not hold onto the sides of the slippery surface and fall (back) into the pitcher, where a strong digestive fluid breaks down the tissue of the trapped prey.
Portrait of a Malagasy Girl.
This photo was taken in November 2009 near the city of Toamasina (a small local village at the eastern coast of Madagascar), where this little girl with beautiful dark eyes was helping her father with repairing a broken fishing net.
Planting new rice in a field covered with water.
This photo was taken in November 2009 near the city of Antsirabe (South of Antananarivo, Madagascar), where this local farmer plows his water covered field to plant new rice crops.
Rice is the corner stone of the Malagasy diet and throughout almost the entire island the contemporary cuisine consists of a base of rice typically with an accompaniment termed laoka. Laoka may be vegetarian or include animal proteins, and typically feature a sauce flavored with such ingredients as ginger, onion, garlic, tomato, vanilla, salt and curry powder.
Madagascar Tomato Frog ‘hiding’ in the green vegetation.
This photo was taken in November 2009 at Peyrieras also known as Madagascar exotic in Marozevo (a couple of miles east of Antananarivo), where this mature male tomato frog was trying to ‘hide’ in the shallow pond covert with green vegetation.
The tomato frog (Dyscophus Antongilii) is an endangered nocturnal species originally from Madagascar and its name comes from the frog’s bright red color. When this species is threatened it puffs up its body and its skin secretes a thick substance that gums up the eyes and mouth of a predator if it wants to grab the frog. The gummy substance contains a toxin that can create an allergic with humans.
Young woman with yellow herbal paste on her face holding her baby.
This photo was taken in November 2009 in Ihosy (in South Central Madagascar near Isalo National Park), where many Malagasy women put a yellow herbal paste on their faces. The paste is made from a special type of wood (the Tsiambara root) and used as a facial mask to beautify the skin, as a medical treatment or to protected from sun and mosquitoes. The local women sometimes decorate it with white symbols on top.
