As I explored Madagascar and discovered new and wonderful creatures I couldn’t shake off the feeling that they look vaguely familiar but somehow they are not quite “right”. Nature certainly used this magical island as a crazy laboratory of sorts. One case in point is the Giant Jumping Rat (Malagasy Giant Rat). It looks like a weird rabbit with stunted ears and a rat’s tail attached to it. I photographed this individual around camp in the Kirindy reserve. They usually come out during the night, not too difficult to spot if you know where to look but a bit challenging to photograph as they tend not to stay still, hopping merrily around like rabbits.

Are you wondering what else is giant-sized in Madagascar? Chamaleons is one answer. All well and good till there. Others are mega-weird cocroaches. Yes cocroaches. Not just any cocroaches, they hiss! In fact they are officially known as Madagascar Hissing Cocroaches.

Techs: Canon 7D | Canon 300 2.8 IS II | f 2.8 | 1/50s | ISO 400 | Canon 600EX-RT Speedlite