MANGROVE FORESTS
Introduction:
·
Mangroves
are found only in the tropical and subtropical regions
·
Mangroves
are mainly between latitudes 25° N and 25° S.
·
Mangroves
grow along the land-sea interface, in bays, estuaries, lagoons and backwaters.
·
Mangroves
are either shrubs or trees that grow up to 25 metres.
·
Intertidal
zones are the best habitat for mangroves.
·
Mangroves
belong predominantly to the plant family Rhizoporaceae
·
Mangrove
roots not only provide support, but also help the plant to breathe.
·
This
ecosystem is also called as tidal forest, coastal woodlands or oceanic
rainforest
·
Mangrove
plantations in Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines and India host several
commercially important species of fishes and crustaceans.
·
Despite
restoration efforts, developers and others have removed over half of the world's
mangroves in recent times.
·
Mangrove
swamps protect coastal areas from erosion, storm surge (especially during hurricanes),
and tsunamis.
·
The
mangroves' massive root systems are efficient at dissipating wave energy.
·
Likewise,
they slow down tidal water enough so its sediment is deposited as the tide
comes in, leaving all except fine particles when the tide ebbs. In this way,
mangroves build their own environments.
·
Because
of the uniqueness of mangrove ecosystems and the protection against erosion
they provide, they are often the object of conservation programs, including
national biodiversity action plans.
Locations:
·
Mangroves
can be found in over 118 countries
·
Largest
percentage of mangroves is found between the 5° N and 5° S latitudes.
·
Approximately
75% of world’s mangroves are found in just 15 countries.
·
Mangrove
vegetation is mainly located in two regions of the globe, (Eastern Hemisphere
and Western Hemisphere)
Continent
wise
Continent
|
%
of Mangroves
|
Asia
|
42
|
Africa
|
21
|
North
America
|
15
|
South
America
|
11
|
·
Indonesia
is the country having the largest area under Mangroves
·
30%
of the global mangroves are confined to Indonesia
·
Brazil,
Australia and India comes in next order
Mangroves in India:
v
Found
along the coastlines of 9 states and 3 union territories
v
38
Mangrove sites (Maharashtra – 10 sites; Odisha – 7 Sites and Tamil Nadu – 5 sites)
v
In
India, there are 34 species of true mangroves
v
Bhitatkanika
(Odisha) has 31 species; Sundarbans have 27 spices and the A&N Is have 24 species
v
As
per IFSR, 2013 Mangroves occupy an area of 4,628 sq km in India (IFSR: Indian
State of Forest Report)
v
This
area accounts for 0.14% of the country's total geographical area; nearly 3% of
the world's mangrove vegetation.
v
The
Forest Survey of India has been assessing the mangrove cover using remote
sensing data
v
In
India, Sundarbans has the largest area under mangroves
v
Mangrove
area in India decreased by 34 sq. km when compared with the previous IFSR, 2011
Mangrove Cover
Assessment (IFSR, 2013)
|
||||
(Area in km2)
|
||||
States/UTs
|
Very Dense Mangrove
|
Moderately Dense Mangrove
|
Open Mangrove
|
Total
|
Andhra
Pradesh
|
0
|
126
|
226
|
352
|
Goa
|
0
|
20
|
2
|
22
|
Gujarat
|
0
|
175
|
928
|
1103
|
Karnataka
|
0
|
3
|
0
|
3
|
Kerala
|
0
|
3
|
3
|
6
|
Maharashtra
|
0
|
69
|
117
|
186
|
Odisha
|
82
|
88
|
43
|
213
|
Tamil
Nadu
|
0
|
16
|
23
|
39
|
West
Bengal
|
993
|
699
|
405
|
2097
|
A&N
Is
|
276
|
258
|
70
|
604
|
Daman
& Diu
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Puducherry
|
0
|
0.14
|
1.49
|
1.63
|
Total
|
1351
|
1457
|
181
|
4628
|
==========================================
No comments:
Post a Comment