Marshes

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Continental edge, nutrient input via runoff, rivers

Slide 15

Red mangroves, low tide, south Florida

Slide 16

Plants of the Mangrove Community

Rhizophora mangle – red mangrove

prop roots; extrudes salt

Avicennia germinans – black mangrove

pneumatophores; extends to coastal Louisiana where it, unusually, coexists w/ Spartina

Laguncularia racemosa – white mangrove

These have viviparous propagules

Much higher diversity in the Indo-Pacific

Slide 17

Zonation and Distribution of mangroves is affected by flooding, salinity, temperature fluctuations (air/soil/water), and soil.

Slide 18

Animals of the Mangrove Community

Prop roots of red mangroves provide substrate for benthic organisms (algae, sponges, hydroids, tunicates, bryozoans)

Mangrove swamps provide critical protected nursery areas for fishes, crustaceans, and shellfish.

Dense mangrove branches serve as rookeries for many coastal species of birds

Organisms reared in mangrove swamps become food for fish (snook, snapper, tarpon, jack, sheepshead, red drum) oysters, and shrimp.

Slide 19

Prop root communities

Slide 20

Wetlands Loss: Mangrove Swamps

Many acres of mangroves in south Florida have been lost to development and to anthropogenic changes in hydrology.

Globally, many areas of mangroves are being cut for wood or converted to aquaculture or mariculture ponds (e.g., fish, shrimp, prawns for seafood restaurants).

Concomitant declines in offshore fisheries can be expected and have been seen.

Slide 21

Mangrove swamp in Mexico