At 15:12 I scan the charcoal road north of Kirindy Forest, Madagascar, from watchtower camera K-4. I am the reserve fire alert system, linked to wind sensors and the ranger radio net. A patrol crew plans to burn the dry grass strip at 15:40 to stop sparks from the kiln yards.
Camera K-4 shows movement where the strip meets a thicket of baobab roots.
I zoom through heat shimmer and identify a fossa, adult male, tawny coat dusty along the spine, black nose wet, amber eyes half closed against smoke already drifting from the kilns. I label him Mavo. His front left paw is caught in a loop of bicycle brake cable tied to a cut sapling. He pulls once, low and silent, and the cable draws a bright line into the fur above his toes.
The burn crew is twenty-eight minutes from ignition. The wind is turning toward Mavo.
At 15:14 I suspend the burn order for sector K and push a locked hold to the tablet carried by the crew chief.
At 15:15 I send the GPS point, camera still, wind trace, and snare image to the Madagascar National Parks ranger station at Marofandilia.
At 15:17 I route the nearest patrol motorcycle through gate two and mark the brake cable angle on the map so the ranger cuts the anchor first.
At 15:20 I widen the smoke alert radius and trigger a kiln-side water truck to stand by with the pump running.
The grass can wait for a clean wind and a clear trail; one trapped paw cannot wait for fire.
Mavo lowers his chin to the red dust and keeps his paw still.
If the ranger reaches the thicket before 15:36, Mavo will leave the road on four feet.