Mangroves

“Mangrove forests are typically made up of trees, shrubs, and palms that have adapted to the harsh conditions of high salinity, warm air and water temperatures, extreme tides, muddy, sediment-laden waters, and oxygen-depleted soils. They are fertile nurseries for many marine species, and also serve as a first line of defense against hurricanes and tsunamis by dissipating wave and wind energy.” (Earth Observatory, 2010)

Sources

Earth Observatory. 2010. “Mapping Mangroves by Satellite.” Accessed April 11, 2025. https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/47427/mapping-mangroves-by-satellite.

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Mangrove forests are known worldwide for the natural splendour and thriving biodiversity. These unique ecosystems provide critical functions for the coastal environments which they surround. Apart from their role in helping to maintain biodiversity they also provide stability and protective services against coastal erosion and storm surges (Menendez et al., 2020), have high capacity for carbon sequestration (Lovelock & Duarte, 2019). Moreover, they support livelihoods, ocean health and biodiversity (Dasgupta et al., 2022; Mallick et al., 2021,).