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Mangrove is a vital bioshield and must be protected

This great tropical island nation has around 17,500 islands with a coastline totaling 81,000 kilometers, which is a distance equivalent to twice the circumference of the earth

Jonathan Wootliff (The Jakarta Post)
Tue, March 3, 2009

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Mangrove is a vital bioshield and must be protected

This great tropical island nation has around 17,500 islands with a coastline totaling 81,000 kilometers, which is a distance equivalent to twice the circumference of the earth.

Indonesia's extensive coastline is home to a quarter of the world's mangroves or 4.5 million hectares of remarkable wetland forests.

Mangrove is a catchall name used for a wide variety of trees that grow in tidal seawater areas with some 89 different species found in Indonesia.

Like so many things in nature, these watery forests provide essential benefits, as the coastal communities of Aceh are now well aware.

Of the approximately 300,000 killed in the tsunami of 26 December 2004, more than 130,000 were from Aceh. With the help of government agencies and environmental organizations, the people of Aceh have been planting new mangroves along their battered shores.

Sadly, mangroves have been disappearing from southeast Asian coastlines for decades, ravaged by people looking for supplies of firewood, or replaced by shrimp farms, resorts and other developments.

Of the five countries hit hardest by the tsunami, development eliminated 1.5 million hectares of mangroves between 1980 and 2000, representing 26 percent of the region's mangrove cover. But the devastation has thankfully inspired governments to try to restore these ecosystems, which environmental scientists and economists have long said are natural defenses against storm damage.

After the wave, villagers reported that areas with more mangrove cover suffered less damage. These anecdotal reports have been supported by analysis of satellite images taken before and after the tsunami. Scientists have discovered that areas with mangrove or tree cover were significantly less likely to have experienced major damage. While these forests don't always prevent the worst devastation, they certainly play a protective role, providing what some describe as a bioshield.

Many governments in Southeast Asia have thankfully pledged their support for mangrove restoration. Indonesia is spending US$22 million, and has already planted hundreds of thousands of seedlings near the city of Banda Aceh. Malaysia has promised US$25 million to replace 4,000 hectares of mangroves lost to the storm and to development.

These coastal forests are among the most productive and biodiverse wetlands on earth with an ecosystem combining both a community of living things and the non-living environment.

Mangrove mud is rich in nutrients with debris washed up from the river and fallen leaves, bacteria, fungi, algae thrive on this silt. These in turn feed creatures higher up in the food chain. The roots are smothered by a vast range of sponges, anemones, marine algae and seaweed, oysters and barnacles, which form the rich mangrove community.

Mangrove trees provide above-water shelter away from hungry fish that swim in with the tide. The canopy of leaves in a mangrove forest captures most of the light, so most green food is found in the canopy with a multitude of leaf-eaters are thus found in this layer.

It is like being in another world, where mangroves offer refuge from land-bound predators as few can negotiate the unstable mud and slippery, weird-looking protruding roots. And the thickets of mangrove branches and leaves provide shelter from the strong coastal winds.

In addition to permanent residents, a vast variety of fauna transit through mangroves, both in the water and by air. Mangroves provide ideal nesting sites for birds, within easy reach of the rich buffet in the water and mud but protected from large predators. Mangroves also provide food for migrating birds that travel from Australia and the Pacific Islands to China and Siberia.

Other creatures that find shelter in the branches and are adapted to mangroves include bats, monkeys, snakes and otters, the fishing cat. As many as 200,000 fruit bats may roost in a mangrove. Some small fruit bats roost in mangroves on offshore islands where they are safe from predators and commute daily to the mainland to feed. The bats also contribute to the mangrove, with the short-nosed fruit bat believed to be the only pollinator of some major species mangrove trees.

If you have ever seen a mangrove forest, you will understand why I describe these places as magical. The sight of trees growing out of the sea with their convoluted root systems is amazing. Large expanses of mud and sand coat a floor upon which an underwater forest with intricate temple-like structures is built, revealing their fascinating aerial roots when the tide goes down. Mangroves are a nursery ground for a multitude of water life and are essential for the health of our oceans.

Indonesia has a responsibility to protect and nurture its wealth of mangrove forests for the benefit of the people of these islands and of the world.

Jonathan Wootliff is an independent sustainable development consultant specializing in the building of productive relationships between companies and NGOs. He can be contacted at jonathan@wootliff.com

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