The role of wild meat for subsistence or as a luxury good is debated. We investigated the role of wild meat in food security in Madagascar, where consumption is poorly understood in urban areas and at regional scales. Using semi-structured interviews (n = 1339 heads-of-households, 21 towns), we aimed to: (1) quantify the amount and purpose of, (2) understand the drivers of, and (3) examine changes in wild meat consumption. Few respondents preferred wild meat (8 ± 3%) but most had eaten it at least once in their lifetime (78 ± 7%). Consumption occurred across ethnic groups, in urban and rural settings. More food insecure areas reported higher rates of wild meat consumption in the 6–8 months prior to interviews. Consumption was best explained by individual preferences and taboos. Less than 1% of respondents had increased consumption during their lifetimes. Wild meat prices showed no change from 2005–2013. Most consumption involved wild pigs and smaller-sized animals, though they were consumed less in the years following the 2009 coup. These data illustrate the differences between urban and rural communities, the occasions in which wild meat is used a source of food security, and provide evidence that some taxa are not hunted sustainably in Madagascar.

Forest carnivores are threatened globally by logging and forest fragmentation yet we know relatively little about how such change affects predator populations. This is especially true in Madagascar, where carnivores have not been extensively studied. To understand better the effects of logging and fragmentation on Malagasy carnivores we evaluated species composition, density of fossa Cryptoprocta ferox and Malagasy civet Fossa fossana, and carnivore occupancy in central-eastern Madagascar. We photographically-sampled carnivores in two contiguous (primary and selectively-logged) and two fragmented rainforests (fragments <2.5 and >15 km from intact forest). Species composition varied, with more native carnivores in the contiguous than fragmented rainforests. F. fossana was absent from fragmented rainforests and at a lower density in selectively-logged than in primary rainforest (mean 1.38±SE 0.22 and 3.19±SE 0.55 individuals km−2, respectively). C. ferox was detected in fragments <2.5 km from forest and had similar densities in primary and selectively-logged forests (0.12±SE 0.05 and 0.09±SE 0.04 adults km−2, respectively) but was absent in fragments >15 km from forest. We identified only two protected areas in Madagascar that may maintain >300 adult C. ferox. Occupancy of broad-striped mongoose Galidictis fasciata was positively related to fragment size whereas occupancy of ring-tailed mongoose Galidia elegans elegans was negatively associated with increasing exotic wild cat (Felis spp.) activity at a camera site. Degraded rainforest fragments are difficult environments for Malagasy carnivores to occupy; there is a need to prioritize the reconnection and maintenance of contiguous forest tracts.

The widespread geographical distributions of mammalian carnivores such as the Carnivora and the Dasyuridae have often been erroneously equated with abundance. Their low densities and high demands on habitat area can render mammalian carnivores especially vulnerable to habitat fragmentation and destruction. The fossa Cryptoprocta ferox (Viverridae) is a mammalian carnivore threatened by the rapid loss of Madagascar's forests, to which it is endemic. A 3-year mark-recapture study, comprising four censuses, generated an estimate of fossa population density at 0.18 adults km−2, or 0.26 individuals km−2. This was supported by a similar estimate from home range data. The fossa is thought to be unusually common in the study area, yet the estimated density was lower than that predicted for a typical tropical carnivorous mammal of the body mass of a fossa. Ecologists are frequently under pressure to provide estimates of local and global population numbers of their study species; we discuss the numerous factors that limit our ability to do this on the basis of a single population estimate. Nonetheless, our findings are sufficient to suggest that none of Madagascar's 46 protected areas supports a viable population of fossas, indicating a demand for corridors and enlarged reserves to ensure this species' long-term survival. Loss of the top predator can have a knock-on effect on an ecosystem. The findings indicate that, to maintain intact tropical forest ecosystems, it may be essential to consider the requirements of their often little-known mammalian carnivores. These requirements could be far greater than previously assumed.