Mangroves. Coastal Ecosystems Series (Volume 2)

Study Number:

11

Author:

S. Miththapala

Main Results and Conclusions:

• An overview description of mangroves is provided on pages 1-6. This section discusses a) “What are mangroves?” including mangrove adaptations for coping with daily changes in tides, adaptations for coping with low oxygen content, and types of mangroves (e.g. Riverine mangroves, Fringe mangroves, and Basin mangroves), and b) “Where are mangrove species found in the World?”
• Ecosystem goods and services provided by mangroves (6-19):
  • Provisioning services: food security, timber and lumber, medicines, other non timber forest products
  • Mangrove zonation regulating services: carbon sequestration, reduce the effects of flooding, trap pollutants
  • Supporting services: shoreline protection, promotion of land accretion, support of the sustenance of coastal biodiversity, primary production, enrichment of nutrients in coastal water
  • Cultural services: aesthetic services, tourism, sustainment of traditional fishing practices
• Threats to mangroves (12-19):
  • Overexploitation of mangrove products
  • Habitat destruction (e.g. shrimp farming, aquaculture, coastal development and land reclamation)
  • Diversion of inland freshwater, pollution
  • Invasive alien species (extinction)
  • Climate change
• What is being done to conserve mangroves? (20-24):
  • Setting aside protected areas
  • Prevention of habitat destruction/ degradation through legislation
  • Mangrove restoration
  • Creating awareness
  • Mangrove valuation (see Table below from pg. 23)