The forest reserve falls within the boundaries of the Kirindy Mitea National Park, which spreads further to the south.

The forest is home to a wide variety of animals, from lemurs and fossas to geckos and chameleons, and numerous birds, the majority of which are found nowhere else.

Many species of iconic plants are also found in the region, from baobabs and spiny palms to Alluaudia and euphorbs.

In its infancy, the forest reserve was operated based on a sustainable timber harvesting experiment, as deforestation is an issue which has not left the region unaffected.

[7] The cold and dry season generally takes place from March - April to November - December of each year.

The red-tailed sportive lemur is also present in the forest, a nocturnal lemur that weighs, on average, 800 g.[8][5][11] Other mammals at Kirindy include: The fossa, a medium-sized, cat-like member of the mongoose family, is the apex predator of Kirindy (and indeed all of Madagascar), apart from humans; its diet is largely made-up of lemurs, and the primates are constantly on the lookout for prowling fossas.

The Malagasy giant jumping rat (Hypogeomys antimena) is endangered due to multiple factors, such as habitat loss, slow gestation or reproductive rates, and gradually human-limited range.

[3] Some of the local reptiles present are: Labord's chameleon, various plated lizards, Henkel's leaf-tailed gecko, big-headed gecko, Madagascar ground boa, giant hog-nosed snake, spear-nosed snake and kapidolo.

This high rate of endemicity is due to the isolation of the island and the fact that it has experienced insularity for a long time.

The Furcifer nicosiai that can only be found in the Kirindy Forest and in the Tsingy de Bemaraha.

Most of the canopy top is about 14 meters in height, but in wetter parts (e.g. in riparian zones) it may almost triple in vertical extent.

[13] These trees and plants develop an important number of fruits yearly which are contributing to the biodiversity of the forest.

[14] By the beginning of the rainy season, these fruits contain both seeds and pulp of high nutritive value which attract many insects and animals.

[18] In the last 20 years, the local population of Central Menabe has been subject to marginalisation since more than 40000 ha of land were converted into rice fields.

[5] Mass deforestation remains present within the Kirindy region and has significantly increased in the last few years.

Many factors such as forest layers, structure, species, richness, diversity, and composition are damaged and disturbed due to the fires.

Fires in the Kirindy forest are mainly caused by hunters, honey collectors or cattle breeders.

Despite these recurrent fires, the more open canopy of the trees present allow a quicker natural regeneration process.

According to scientists, the forest can recover within 12 years of a fire disturbance incident by respecting the tree density, basal area and species richness and diversity.

[4] The Kirindy forest has also been threatened in the past by various natural disasters such as cyclones and hurricanes.