Rhizophora mangle

Last updated

Red mangrove
Rhizophora mangle00.jpg
1796 Plate by Johannes Zorn
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Rhizophoraceae
Genus: Rhizophora
Species:
R. mangle
Binomial name
Rhizophora mangle
L.
Rhizophora mangle - MHNT Rhizophora mangle MHNT.BOT.2010.12.12.jpg
Rhizophora mangle - MHNT

Rhizophora mangle, also known as the red mangrove, [1] is a salt-tolerant, small-to-medium sized evergreen tree restricted to coastal, estuarine ecosystems along the southern portions of North America, the Caribbean as well as Central America and tropical West Africa. [2] Its viviparous "seeds", in actuality called propagules, become fully mature plants before dropping off the parent tree. [3] These are dispersed by water until eventually embedding in the shallows.

Contents

Rhizophora mangle grows on aerial prop roots, which arch above the water level, giving stands of this tree the characteristic "mangrove" appearance. It is a valuable plant in Florida, Louisiana, and Texas coastal ecosystems. The name refers to the red colour on the inner part of its roots when halved, so it does not display any red colour in its regular appearance. In its native habitat it is threatened by invasive species such as the Brazilian pepper tree (Schinus terebinthifolius). The red mangrove itself is considered an invasive species in some locations, such as Hawaii, where it forms dense, monospecific thickets. [4] R. mangle thickets, however, provide nesting and hunting habitat for a diverse array of organisms, including fish, birds, and crocodiles.

Distribution and habitat

Red mangroves are found in subtropical and tropical areas in both hemispheres, extending to near 28°N to S latitude. They thrive on coastlines in brackish water and in swampy salt marshes. Because they are well adapted to salt water, they thrive where many other plants fail and create their own ecosystems, the mangals. Red mangroves are often found near white mangroves ( Laguncularia racemosa ), black mangroves ( Avicennia germinans ), and buttonwood ( Conocarpus erectus ) though often more seaward than the other species. Through stabilization of their surroundings, mangroves create a community for other plants and animals (such as mangrove crabs). Though rooted in soil, mangrove roots are often submerged in water for several hours or on a permanent basis. The roots are usually sunk in a sand or clay base, which allows for some protection from the waves.

Specimens of Moesziomyces aphidis have been collected from water samples and on Rhizophora mangle leaves along the Perequê-Áçu River, in mangroves located in São Paulo State, Brazil. [5]

Description

Red mangroves are easily distinguishable through their unique prop roots system and viviparous seeds. The prop roots of a red mangrove suspend it over the water, thereby giving it extra support and protection. They also help the tree to combat hypoxia by allowing it a direct intake of oxygen through its root structure.

A mangrove can reach up to 80 ft (24 m) in height in ideal conditions, but it is commonly found at a more modest 20 ft (6.1 m). Its bark is thick and a grey-brown color. Mangrove leaves are 1–2 in (2.5–5.1 cm) wide and 3–5 in (7.6–12.7 cm) long, with smooth margins and an elliptical shape. They are a darker shade of green on the tops than on the bottoms. The tree produces yellow flowers in the spring.

Reproduction

As a viviparous plant, R. mangle creates a propagule that is in reality a living tree. Though resembling an elongated seed pod, the fully grown propagule on the mangrove is capable of rooting and producing a new tree. The trees are hermaphrodites, capable of self or wind pollination. The tree undergoes no dormant stage as a seed, but rather progresses to a live plant before leaving its parent tree. A mangrove propagule may float in brackish water for over a year before rooting.

Uses

In the Casamance region in southern Senegal, halved roots of R. mangle are commonly used to create roof and ceiling structures, as well as for production of firewood and charcoal.[ citation needed ]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangrove</span> Shrub growing in brackish water

A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have special adaptations to take in extra oxygen and to remove salt, which allow them to tolerate conditions that would kill most plants. 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. Mangrove plant families first appeared during the Late Cretaceous to Paleocene epochs, and became widely distributed in part due to the movement of tectonic plates. The oldest known fossils of mangrove palm date to 75 million years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhizophoraceae</span> Family of flowering plants

The Rhizophoraceae is a family of tropical or subtropical flowering plants. It includes around 147 species distributed in 15 genera. Under the family, there are three tribes, Rhizophoreae, Gynotrocheae, and Macarisieae. Even though Rhizophoraceae is known for its mangrove members, only the genera under Rhizophoreae grow in the mangrove habitats and the remaining members live in inland forests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangrove forest</span> Productive wetlands that occur in coastal intertidal zones

Mangrove forests, also called mangrove swamps, mangrove thickets or mangals, are productive wetlands that occur in coastal intertidal zones. Mangrove forests grow mainly at tropical and subtropical latitudes because mangroves cannot withstand freezing temperatures. There are about 80 different species of mangroves, all of which grow in areas with low-oxygen soil, where slow-moving waters allow fine sediments to accumulate.

<i>Rhizophora</i> Genus of trees

Rhizophora is a genus of tropical mangrove trees, sometimes collectively called true mangroves. The most notable species is the red mangrove but some other species and a few natural hybrids are known. Rhizophora species generally live in intertidal zones which are inundated daily by the ocean. They exhibit a number of adaptations to this environment, including pneumatophores that elevate the plants above the water and allow them to respire oxygen even while their lower roots are submerged and a cytological molecular "pump" mechanism that allows them to remove excess salts from their cells. The generic name is derived from the Greek words ριζα (rhiza), meaning "root," and φορος (phoros), meaning "bearing," referring to the stilt-roots.

<i>Avicennia germinans</i> Species of tree

Avicennia germinans, the black mangrove, is a shrub or small tree growing up to 12 meters in the acanthus family, Acanthaceae. It grows in tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, on both the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts, and on the Atlantic Coast of tropical Africa, where it thrives on the sandy and muddy shores where seawater reaches. It is common throughout coastal areas of Texas and Florida, and ranges as far north as southern Louisiana and northern Florida in the United States.

The Florida mangroves ecoregion, of the mangrove forest biome, comprise an ecosystem along the coasts of the Florida peninsula, and the Florida Keys. Four major species of mangrove populate the region: red mangrove, black mangrove, white mangrove, and the buttonwood. The mangroves live in the coastal zones in the more tropical southern parts of Florida; mangroves are particularly vulnerable to frosts. Mangroves are important habitat as both fish nursery and brackish water habitats for birds and other coastal species.

<i>Rhizophora apiculata</i> Species of tree

The tall-stilt mangrove belongs to the Plantae kingdom under the Rhizophoraceae family. R. apiculata is distributed throughout Australia, Guam, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Micronesia, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, the Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, the Maldives, Thailand, Vanuatu, and Vietnam. Rhizophora apiculata is called ‘bakhaw lalaki,’ in the Philippines, "Thakafathi ތަކަފަތި" in the Maldives, 'Đước' in Vietnam, Garjan in India, as well as other vernacular names.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography and ecology of the Everglades</span> Details of the natural environment of the Everglades

Before drainage, the Everglades, a region of tropical wetlands in southern Florida, were an interwoven mesh of marshes and prairies covering 4,000 square miles (10,000 km2). The Everglades is both a vast watershed that has historically extended from Lake Okeechobee 100 miles (160 km) south to Florida Bay, and many interconnected ecosystems within a geographic boundary. It is such a unique meeting of water, land, and climate that the use of either singular or plural to refer to the Everglades is appropriate. When Marjory Stoneman Douglas wrote her definitive description of the region in 1947, she used the metaphor "River of Grass" to explain the blending of water and plant life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Guinea mangroves</span> Mangrove ecoregion that covers extensive areas of the coastline New Guinea

The New Guinea mangroves is a mangrove ecoregion that covers extensive areas of the coastline New Guinea, the large island in the western Pacific Ocean north of Australia.

<i>Kandelia obovata</i> Species of flowering plant

Kandelia obovata is a species of plant in the Rhizophoraceae family, i.e. a kind of mangrove. It is found in Vietnam, Natuna Islands of Indonesia, Southern China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan. Its presence in the Philippines is possible but not confirmed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecological values of mangroves</span>

Mangrove ecosystems represent natural capital capable of producing a wide range of goods and services for coastal environments and communities and society as a whole. Some of these outputs, such as timber, are freely exchanged in formal markets. Value is determined in these markets through exchange and quantified in terms of price. Mangroves are important for aquatic life and home for many species of fish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian mangroves</span> Distribution of Australian mangroves

Australia has coastal areas where mangrove thickets and swamps occur, such as in the intertidal zones of protected tropical, subtropical and some temperate coastal rivers, river deltas, estuaries, lagoons and bays. Less than 1% of Australia's total forested area consists of mangroves.

<i>Bruguiera cylindrica</i> Species of flowering plant

Bruguiera cylindrica is a mangrove in the family Rhizophoraceae. It grows in mangrove swamps in tropical Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tropical salt pond ecosystem</span> Buffer zone between terrestrial and marine ecosystems

Salt ponds are a natural feature of both temperate and tropical coastlines. These ponds form a vital buffer zone between terrestrial and marine ecosystems. Contaminants such as sediment, nitrates and phosphates are filtered out by salt ponds before they can reach the ocean. The depth, salinity and overall chemistry of these dynamic salt ponds fluctuate depending on temperature, rainfall, and anthropogenic influences such as nutrient runoff. The flora and fauna of tropical salt ponds differ markedly from those of temperate ponds. Mangrove trees are the dominant vegetation of tropical salt pond ecosystems, which also serve as vital feeding and breeding grounds for shore birds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangrove restoration</span> Ecosystem regeneration

Mangrove restoration is the regeneration of mangrove forest ecosystems in areas where they have previously existed. Restoration can be defined as "the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed." Mangroves can be found throughout coastal wetlands of tropical and subtropical environments. Mangroves provide essential ecosystem services such as water filtration, aquatic nurseries, medicinal materials, food, and lumber. Additionally, mangroves play a vital role in climate change mitigation through carbon sequestration and protection from coastal erosion, sea level rise, and storm surges. Mangrove habitat is declining due to human activities such as clearing land for industry and climate change. Mangrove restoration is critical as mangrove habitat continues to rapidly decline. Different methods have been used to restore mangrove habitat, such as looking at historical topography, or mass seed dispersal. Fostering the long-term success of mangrove restoration is attainable by involving local communities through stakeholder engagement.

<i>Rhizophora mucronata</i> Species of plant

Rhizophora mucronata is a species of mangrove found on coasts and river banks in East Africa and the Indo-Pacific region.

<i>Ceriops australis</i> Species of flowering plant

Ceriops australis, the yellow mangrove or smooth-fruited yellow mangrove, is a species of mangrove in the family Rhizophoraceae, native to tropical northern Australia and southern New Guinea. It is a common species in the region and although mangroves are threatened by habitat destruction and climate change, the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".

<i>Rhizophora racemosa</i> Species of tree

Rhizophora racemosa is a species of mangrove tree in the family Rhizophoraceae. It has a patchy distribution on the Pacific coast of Central and South America, occurs in places on the Atlantic coast of that continent, and has a more widespread range on the Atlantic coast of West Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Virgin Islands Mangroves</span> Wetlands on the coast of the US Virgin Islands

United States Virgin Islands Mangroves are flowering trees that occupy the majority of the wetlands in the Virgin Islands. These mangroves typically grow in areas that are close to the shore and thrive in oxygen-deprived, water-logged soils and salty conditions. In the Virgin Islands, there are three types of mangroves: red, black and white mangroves.

References

  1. 1 2 Ellison, A.; Farnsworth, E.; Moore, G. (2015). "Rhizophora mangle". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2015: e.T178851A69024847. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-1.RLTS.T178851A69024847.en . Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  2. "FOR389/FR460: Rhizophora mangle, Red Mangrove". Ask IFAS - Powered by EDIS. Retrieved 2024-06-03.
  3. DeYoe, Hudson; Lonard, Robert I.; Judd, Frank W.; Stalter, Richard; Feller, Ilka (2020-03-24). "Biological Flora of the Tropical and Subtropical Intertidal Zone: Literature Review for Rhizophora mangle L." Journal of Coastal Research. 36 (4): 857. doi:10.2112/JCOASTRES-D-19-00088.1. ISSN   0749-0208. S2CID   216143703.
  4. Allen, J.A., 1998. Mangroves as Alien Species: The Case of Hawaii. Global Ecology and Biogeographical Letters 7:61-71
  5. "aphidis :: Marine Fungi". www.marinefungi.org. Retrieved 9 August 2022.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Rhizophora mangle at Wikimedia Commons