Mangrove

Mangrove

A mangrove is a <a href="/en/Shrub" title="Shrub" class="wl">shrub</a> or tree that grows in coastal <a href="/en/Saline_water" title="Saline water" class="wl">saline</a> or <a href="/en/Brackish_water" title="Brackish water" class="wl">brackish water</a>. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in several plant families. They occur worldwide in the <a href="/en/Tropics" title="Tropics" class="wl">tropics</a> and <a href="/en/Subtropics" title="Subtropics" class="wl">subtropics</a> and even some <a href="/en/Temperate" title="Temperate" class="mw-redirect wl">temperate</a> coastal areas, mainly between latitudes 30°&nbsp;N and 30°&nbsp;S, with the greatest mangrove area within 5° of the <a href="/en/Equator" title="Equator" class="wl">equator</a>.<a href="#cite_note-Giri2010-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;">[1]</a><a href="#cite_note-Friess-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a>
Mangrove plant families first appeared during the <a href="/en/Late_Cretaceous" title="Late Cretaceous" class="wl">Late Cretaceous</a> to <a href="/en/Paleocene" title="Paleocene" class="wl">Paleocene</a> epochs, and became widely distributed in part due to the <a href="/en/Plate_tectonics" title="Plate tectonics" class="wl">movement of tectonic plates</a>. The oldest known fossils of <a href="/en/Nypa_fruticans" title="Nypa fruticans" class="wl">mangrove palm</a> date to 75 million years ago.<a href="#cite_note-Friess-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a>

<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt1">Shrub growing in brackish water</div>
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<figure class="mw-default-size wiki-thumb"><a href="/en/File:Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_(2).JPG" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_(2).JPG"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_%282%29.JPG/290px-Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_%282%29.JPG" decoding="async" data-file-width="2801" data-file-height="4202" data-file-type="bitmap" height="435" width="290" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_%282%29.JPG/435px-Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_%282%29.JPG 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_%282%29.JPG/580px-Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_%282%29.JPG 2x" alt="Sonneratia_alba_-_Manado_%282%29.JPG"></a><figcaption>Mangroves are hardy shrubs and trees that thrive in salt water and have specialised adaptations so they can survive the volatile energies of <a href="/en/Intertidal_zone" title="Intertidal zone" class="wl">intertidal zones</a> along marine coasts.</figcaption></figure>

Mangroves are salt-tolerant trees, also called <a href="/en/Halophyte" title="Halophyte" class="wl">halophytes</a>, and are adapted to live in harsh coastal conditions. They contain a complex salt filtration system and a complex root system to cope with saltwater immersion and wave action. They are adapted to the <a href="/en/Hypoxia_(environmental)" title="Hypoxia (environmental)" class="wl">low-oxygen</a> conditions of waterlogged mud,<a href="#cite_note-3" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 3;">[3]</a> but are most likely to thrive in the upper half of the <a href="/en/Intertidal_zone" title="Intertidal zone" class="wl">intertidal zone</a>.<a href="#cite_note-Zimmer-4" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 4;">[4]</a>

The mangrove <a href="/en/Biome" title="Biome" class="wl">biome</a>, often called the <a href="/en/Mangrove_forest" title="Mangrove forest" class="wl">mangrove forest</a> or mangal, is a distinct saline <a href="/en/Woodland" title="Woodland" class="wl">woodland</a> or <a href="/en/Shrubland" title="Shrubland" class="wl">shrubland</a> habitat characterized by <a href="/en/Sedimentary_depositional_environment" title="Sedimentary depositional environment" class="mw-redirect wl">depositional</a> coastal environments, where fine sediments (often with high organic content) collect in areas protected from high-energy wave action. The saline conditions tolerated by various mangrove species range from brackish water, through pure seawater (3 to 4% salinity), to water concentrated by evaporation to over twice the salinity of ocean seawater (up to 9% salinity).<a href="#cite_note-5" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 5;">[5]</a><a href="#cite_note-Primavera-6" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 6;">[6]</a>

Beginning in 2010, remote sensing technologies and global data have been used to assess areas, conditions and <a href="/en/Deforestation" title="Deforestation" class="wl">deforestation</a> rates of mangroves around the world.<a href="#cite_note-Bunting-7" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 7;">[7]</a><a href="#cite_note-Giri2010-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;">[1]</a><a href="#cite_note-Friess-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a> In 2018, the Global Mangrove Watch Initiative released a new global baseline which estimates the total mangrove forest area of the world as of 2010 at 137,600&nbsp;km2 (53,100&nbsp;sq&nbsp;mi), spanning 118 countries and territories.<a href="#cite_note-Friess-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a><a href="#cite_note-Bunting-7" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 7;">[7]</a> A 2022 study on losses and gains of tidal wetlands estimates a 3,700&nbsp;km2 (1,400&nbsp;sq&nbsp;mi) net decrease in global mangrove extent from 1999 to 2019, which was only partially offset by gains of 1,800&nbsp;km2 (690&nbsp;sq&nbsp;mi).<a href="#cite_note-8" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 8;">[8]</a> Mangrove loss continues due to human activity, with a global annual deforestation rate estimated at 0.16%, and per-country rates as high as 0.70%. Degradation in quality of remaining mangroves is also an important concern.<a href="#cite_note-Friess-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a>

There is interest in <a href="/en/Mangrove_restoration" title="Mangrove restoration" class="wl">mangrove restoration</a> for several reasons. Mangroves support sustainable coastal and marine ecosystems. They protect nearby areas from <a href="/en/Tsunamis" title="Tsunamis" class="mw-redirect wl">tsunamis</a> and extreme weather events. Mangrove forests are also effective at <a href="/en/Carbon_sequestration" title="Carbon sequestration" class="wl">carbon sequestration</a> and storage and <a href="/en/Climate_change_mitigation" title="Climate change mitigation" class="wl">mitigate climate change</a>.<a href="#cite_note-Friess-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a><a href="#cite_note-earthobservatory_20190225-9" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 9;">[9]</a><a href="#cite_note-Simard2018-10" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 10;">[10]</a> As the <a href="/en/Effects_of_climate_change" title="Effects of climate change" class="wl">effects of climate change</a> become more severe, mangrove ecosystems are expected to help local ecosystems adapt and be more resilient to changes like <a href="/en/Extreme_weather" title="Extreme weather" class="wl">extreme weather</a> and <a href="/en/Sea_level_rise" title="Sea level rise" class="wl">sea level rise</a>. The success of mangrove restoration may depend heavily on engagement with local stakeholders, and on careful assessment to ensure that growing conditions will be suitable for the species chosen.<a href="#cite_note-Zimmer-4" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 4;">[4]</a>

A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in several plant families. They occur worldwide in the tropics and subtropics and even some temperate coastal areas, mainly between latitudes 30° N and 30° S, with the greatest mangrove area within 5° of the equator. Mangroves are salt-tolerant trees, also called halophytes, and are adapted to live in harsh coastal conditions. They contain a complex salt filtration system and a complex root system to cope with saltwater immersion and wave action. They are adapted to the low-oxygen conditions of waterlogged mud, The mangrove biome, often called the mangrove forest or mangal, is a distinct saline woodland or shrubland habitat characterized by depositional coastal environments, where fine sediments collect in areas protected from high-energy wave action. The saline conditions tolerated by various mangrove species range from brackish water, through pure seawater , to water concentrated by evaporation to over twice the salinity of ocean seawater . 