The fossa is Madagascar's largest carnivore and the top predator in an ecosystem unlike any other on Earth, facing welfare pressures from deforestation and bushmeat hunting.
Deforestation for slash-and-burn agriculture removes the forest habitat that fossa require for hunting and territory. Bushmeat hunting directly reduces population size. As top predator, population viability depends on the prey base of lemurs and other endemic species which are themselves under extreme pressure. Fossa conservation requires whole-ecosystem protection.