Leaping Lemurs

I've got a riddle...

What do you get when you cross a squirrel, a cat, a raccoon, and a monkey?  A lemur.  Ok, that was pretty lame, but I never claimed to be a comedian, just a Mom (and my kids thought it was clever).  Ok, seriously, you can't have a week about Madagascar and not talk about lemurs, right?  So here we go.

Lemurs are primates that are very distant cousins to the primates (monkeys, apes, etc) that live in other places of the world.  They were able to evolve and adapt in relative peace and quiet for thousands (millions?) of years on their isolated island.  There are around 100 different species of lemurs that range from 1oz. to 20lbs.  Before they became extinct, there were some Giant Lemurs that weighed almost 200lbs.!

They have all adapted to fit into the ecological area of the island where they live.  Many eat specialized diets of plants and fruit that only grow in the areas around them, because of this, the deforestation and habitat destruction that has happened over the last 2,000 years on the island has really endangered this animal species.  At least 17 species have become extinct and the remaining species are either on the threatened or endangered lists.  Sad, so sad.  I recommend you visit the library or search the web for some more wonderful facts about these adorable animals- maybe you'll be inspired to help save them in some way.

We really wanted to make a lemur project, but something different that we haven't done before.  So we made beady buddies.  Are you familiar with these?  They are little characters that you make with cord and pony beads that you can attach to a backpack or zipper.  My daughter made some at school last year and really enjoyed them.  So I found a template for a monkey and changed the design a little to make a ....

Ring-Tailed Lemur Beady Buddy
For the project you will need:

• black, grey and white pony beads.  My black and grey beads looks very similar on the pictures.
• 1 yd. plastic cord or yarn with the ends stiffened
• template - this is pretty roughly drawn, sorry.
• clip so you can attach it to things

1.  Fold your cord in half to find the center.  Slip the folded end through the clip and then bring the loose ends through the folded loop and pull to tighten and attach the cord to the clip.  This is called a half hitch.

2. String the first row of beads (that make the top of the head) on one of the strings.  Pass the other string through the same beads but going in the opposite direction.  Pull to tighten. 

3.  Put the beads on the string following the pattern on the template, bringing the strings through the beads from opposite ends each time.

4.  The ears have a special trick.  When you finish the 4th row (the one with the nose) put the two grey ear beads on one string and pass the cord through the beads in Row 2.  Put the other two ear beads on and pass it through Row 4 again.

5.  Keep going until you have finished the lemur's tail and then tie it off with a knot.

This is a little bit of an advanced art project.  Adult help might be needed but I was surprised by how quickly my daughter caught on.  I think it turned out pretty cute- my brother said it looked like a lemur that got run over.  Brothers can be so mean.

We also made a gecko that was a little easier.  I included that on the template too.  This is a good project for those long summer afternoons when you want a little peace and quiet.  There are hundreds of different templates online! 

 

 

Chameleons

Colorful Characters

Madagascar is known for having very unique animals and plants.  The lemur is possibly the most well known, and we will be doing a project on them, but I also wanted to do a project on another well known inhabitant of the island- the chameleon.

There are over 160 different species of chameleons, ranging in size from 3/4 of an inch to 26 inches, and almost 2/3 of these chameleons live in Madagascar. 

These reptiles are famous for a few traits-

• They have eyes that move independently of each other, allowing them a 360° view.
• Their feet are specially formed to live in the trees.  Their five toes are grouped into two pads that grip the branches.
• They walk with a back and forth motion to mimic the leaves blowing.  This makes them hard to see.
• They have long sticky tongues that can grab an insect or worm from inches away without the chameleon moving at all.
• They can change colors!!  This is perhaps their most well-known trait, but I (and I bet you too) thought this was mostly for camouflage.  It's not.  The chameleon changes it's color to show emotions, communicate with potential mates, and defend it's territory.
  

Chameleons are pretty cool alright.  So we made one to keep as a little pet.....

Pipe cleaner Chameleon
For the project you will need:

• 3 green pipe cleaners (at least)
• pink pipe cleaner
• scissors
• sharpie or googly eyes

1. Take one green pipe cleaner and make a loop about 1" long on the end.  This will be the head.

2. Cut a piece of the pink pipe cleaner about 2" long and attach one end to the "head".  This is the tongue.  You can curl it up to make it look cuter.

3. Take another green pipe cleaner and wrap the head to make it look more like a solid head.  This should take about 3/4 of the pipe cleaner.  Cut off the rest to use as legs.

4.  Wrap the piece you just cut off around the long piece of pipe cleaner that is extending from the head.  These are one set of legs. 

 

5. From the third green pipe cleaner cut another piece for another set of legs.  Attach them to the body as well.

6.  Coil the rest of the 3rd pipe cleaner (or use another pipe cleaner) until it looks like a spring.  Bend up the legs and slide the coil over them to make the body.  Pull the legs back out and arrange until it looks right.

7.  You should still have a piece of the 1st pipe cleaner (the body) sticking out of the back.  This is the tail.  Curl it under in a spiral.
The picture shows it curled up but it should curl under- I fixed it later. :)

8.  Draw on some eyes or glue on some googly eyes.  The googly eyes would look cuter but I couldn't find any!

9.  Bend the little guys feet and attach him to some plants (or your finger!)  Too cute :) 

This project was a little tough for my 4 year old.  He lost interest pretty quick.  My 6 year old was able to do it but it was a little challenging for her too. 

On the Menu: Madagascar's National Dish

Let's Eat!

If this blog has taught me anything it's that I really enjoy trying the foods and recipes from different countries, and that my kids don't share that same passion.  This week we are learning about Madagascar and I didn't really know what to expect, but I was very happy to find that lemur was not a featured ingredient in any dish I saw. 

In Madagascar they raise a type of cattle called Zebu.  They were introduced to the country by Indonesian settlers over 1,000 years ago as a means of meat, milk, and as farm labor.  The people also raise and eat chickens and, because of the surrounding Indian Ocean, seafood of all types.  Many types of vegetables and fresh fruits are also part of the cuisine and rice is the main staple- it is served at every meal! 

Traditionally, meals are served and eaten on mats on the ground, with the food on a plate in the center and everyone eating from the same dish. The food is prepared simply, not usually spicy but they do have a spicy condiment that they use called sakay.

We chose to make the national dish - Romazava.  Romazava is a stew of beef and greens served over rice.  Simple, healthy and sounds pretty good.  There are many versions on the internet- here is my version since I made some variations. 

Romazava
For the recipe you will need:

• 2 lbs. cubed beef (zebu if you can find it)
• 1 lg. onion - chopped
• 1 can tomatoes- chopped or diced
• 4 cloves garlic- finely chopped
• 1 T fresh ginger- finely chopped
• 1 T salt
• 1 red bell pepper- chopped
• 1 jalapeno- diced
• 4 cups water (broth might be nice too)
• 1 bunch of spinach (about 3 cups)- coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch watercress- coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch kale- coarsely chopped

1.  Fry the onions in a large pan until they are soft.  Add the meat and cook about 10 minutes until browned.
2.  Add the garlic, ginger, tomatoes, jalapeno and bell pepper and cook for another 10 minutes.
3.  Add the water and bring to a boil.  When boiling add the greens.  It looks like a lot but they wilt quickly.
4. Reduce heat to low and simmer (covered) for about 45 minutes or until meat is tender.
5. Serve over rice.  I added some sriracha sauce to it at the end too.

This was a simple and pretty tasty dish, although not the most attractive.  Lots of healthy dark green leafy vegetables.  The kids liked the meat and sauce over the rice but I had to pick the greens out.  I imagine that some of the nutrition leeched into the meat and broth, right?  I felt like it needed something though, I don't know what.  The original recipes had all types of different greens that I'd never heard of, the one I mainly based mine on had mustard greens.  Maybe it was my choice of greens that was off?  Who knows?  This was the first time I'd ever eaten watercress.  Kind of peppery and bitter, interesting.  Overall, this wasn't one of my favorite meals but it was good and no lemurs were injured.

 

Week 48: Madagascar

Week 48!!!!

I cannot believe we are already on week 48!  The journey is almost over, not that we aren't still enjoying the experience, but it is getting a little harder now that most of the major countries are done.  5 more weeks and we can end our journey knowing so much more about the world and it's cultures than we did a year ago!!  But, we've still got to do 5 more countries so let's get to work.  This week we picked...........

Madagascar!!
About the only thing I knew abut Madagascar was that it was an island somewhere off the coast of Africa and that's where lemurs come from. 

I did NOT know:

The Gondwana supercontinent

• Madagascar is the 4th largest island in the world.  It was once attached to the Gondwana supercontinent but broke away over 80 million years ago and settled off the SE coast of Africa.  Scientists think it was attached near India, that was pretty far to travel!!

• 90% of the wildlife found on Madagascar is found nowhere else on the planet.  Because it was so isolated the species developed their own unique features.

• Over 22 million people live on Madagascar.  I had no idea it was that populated.  I think I was confusing it with the Galapagos Islands and thinking it was just animals and jungle!  People have been living on the island for over 2500 years, they were thought to have crossed the Indian Ocean from Indonesia

• The capital city, Antananarivo, is the most populated city on the island.  It's coordinates are 18.93°S / 47.52° E.

• Madagascar was once an important trading and refueling port for ships travelling the Indian Ocean.  It was also notorious for harboring pirates!!  Arrgh.

• In 1895, France fought a war and took control of the island until 1960.  Their influence is seen in many of the recipes of the island and French is one of the official languages.  Malagasy is the other official language.

• Since the introduction of people, farming, and cattle to the island, 90% of the forests have been cut down and many of the unique species have become extinct or endangered.  Some of them were the Giant Lemur and the Elephant Bird, which stood over 10ft. tall!

Wow, I sure didn't know much about Madagascar!  I guess the movie, Madagascar , wasn't a documentary?!  So are you telling me the national anthem of Madagascar isn't "I Like To Move It"?!?!

Well, it should be.  That song rocks.