Search Results (202)

Mangroves provide numerous ecological, social, and economic benefits that include carbon sequestration, habitat for biodiversity, food, recreation and leisure, income, and coastal resilience. In this regard, mangrove-based carbon market projects (MbCMP), involving mangrove conservation, protection, and restoration, are a nature-based solution (NbS) for climate change mitigation. Despite the proliferation of blue carbon projects, a highly publicized need for local community participation by developers, and existing project implementation standards, local communities are usually left out for several reasons, such as a lack of capacity to engage in business-to-business (B2B) market agreements and communication gaps. Local communities need to be engaged and supported at all stages of the MbCMP development process to enable them to protect their ecological, economic, and social interests as custodians of such a critical ecosystem. In this paper, we provided 15 strategic considerations and recommendations to engage and secure the interests of local communities in the growing mangrove carbon market trade. The 15 considerations are grouped into four recommendation categories: (i) project development and community engagement, (ii) capacity building and educational activities, (iii) transparency in resource allocation and distribution, and (iv) partnerships with local entities and long-term monitoring. We expect our study to increase local participation and community-level ecological, social, and economic benefits from MbCMP by incorporating equitable benefit-sharing mechanisms in a B2B conservation-agreement model. Full article

This commentary underscores the importance of the recent discovery of the oldest in situ Holocene mangrove sediments found to date in the Caribbean region. It also emphasizes the implications of this finding for understanding postglacial sea level rise and the subsequent recolonization of current Caribbean coasts by mangrove communities. These communities likely survived the last glaciation in small microrefugia located beyond the present continental shelf, from where they expanded to form the present-day mangrove biogeographical patterns. Full article

This study examined local communities’ perceptions of mangroves in coastal southeastern Cuba. A variety of methods were employed, including mixed and structured questionnaire surveys, interviews with key informants, and document reviews. Data were gathered from 334 respondents living in communities adjacent to four mangrove social–ecological systems (SESs). The analysis focused on five variables: community use of mangrove resources, ecosystem services, threats to the ecosystem, management activities, and social–ecological relationships. To qualitatively assess the influence of social–ecological relationships and governance, a matrix was created based on anthropogenic activities identified by respondents and their perceptions of ecosystem services. A Spearman’s rank correlation analysis was performed between demographic variables and identified mangrove uses. The Kruskal–Wallis test was used to compare the frequency of mangrove uses and the perception of ecosystem services among the studied areas. The results indicate that, while local people recognise the uses and ecosystem services of mangroves, they do not rely on them for their livelihoods. Perceptions of ecosystem services vary significantly depending on the occupation of the respondents and the locality. They also showed moderate to full awareness of management responsibilities and activities at each site. The most commonly identified threats were climate change, drought, and deforestation. Three types of social–ecological relationships were identified based on the characteristics of the communities, their economic activities, and their impacts on the mangroves: urban–industrial, rural–agricultural, and rural–agricultural/tourism. Based on the results, recommendations are made for ecosystem governance in the southeast of Cuba. Full article

Concern for the future requires local steward-led cooperation between natural and social scientists and decision-makers to develop informed and policy-relevant nature-based mitigation solutions, including blue carbon (BC), which can help secure the future. Salt marshes, kelp forests, and seagrass meadows (and to a lesser extent mangroves) are significant BC ecosystems in temperate areas. We discuss the concept of blue carbon stocks and the scientific approaches to building BC stocks considering the variability in local conditions and the co-benefits of blue carbon ecosystems to improve climate change mitigation and adaptation mechanisms. The study examines (1) methods to assess the potential of BC ecosystems and the impact of disturbances, while (2) building relevant policy based on socio-economic assessments of impacted communities. We highlight economic and social approaches to rebuilding BC using financial tools such as blue bonds, development plans, cost-benefit analyses, cross-ecosystem restoration projects, AI and blockchain, and economic accounts of coastal ecosystems, while emphasizing that cutting carbon emissions is more important than (re)building BC stocks. Full article

Mangrove ecotourism is gaining immense popularity in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries as a neoliberal conservation tool, and it has contributed significantly to the growth of the tourism sector in the region over the past two decades. However, there is no comprehensive review on the full extent of mangrove ecotourism activities and the contribution to mangrove conservation/restoration and economic growth in the region. A systematic literature review approach was used to examine the evolution of mangrove ecotourism in the GCC countries from 2010 to 2023. A total of 55 articles were retrieved from the Google and Google Scholar search engines, and the Scopus and Web of Science databases were incorporated. We synthesized the results and provided perspectives on the following: (1) the geographical and temporal distribution of studies in relation to mangrove extent, (2) key sites, attractions, and values for mangrove ecotourism activities, (3) the positive and negative impacts of mangrove ecotourism, and (4) existing mangrove conservation and restoration initiatives for the growth of mangrove ecotourism in the GCC countries. The findings underscore the significance of mangrove ecotourism in supporting economic development, protecting coastal ecosystems, and sustaining local livelihoods in the GCC countries. However, this study highlights the crucial need for sustainable coastal environmental management through integrated land use planning and zoning to address the negative impacts of anthropogenic pressures on mangrove ecosystems and ecotourism attractions. The use of remote sensing tools is invaluable in the monitoring of mangrove ecosystems and associated ecotourism impacts for informing evidence-based conservation and restoration management approaches. Thus, harnessing mangrove ecotourism opportunities can help the GCC countries with balancing economic growth, coastal environmental sustainability, and community well-being. Full article

Rice cultivation is one of the most important agro-economic activities in many countries, and the correct seed storage between production cycles is essential for crop success. In Guinea-Bissau, mangrove swamp rice (MSR) is a highly productive rice cropping system, thus providing surplus for sale. Depending on storage conditions, rice grains may present moisture, insects, or the development of fungi that might affect crop productivity. Considering different rice varieties and storage conditions, samples were collected from 30 farmers within 13 villages across the main MSR-producing regions. Stored rice was used to isolate and identify seed-borne fungi through DNA barcoding, to test aflatoxin content, and to evaluate seed germination rates. Polyethylene bags (the container), raised wooden platforms, and storage rooms (the structures) are the most used facilities. Hermetic containers were recorded mainly in Oio. A total fungal richness of 18 genera was found, and 16 different species were identified. The most represented fungal genera are Aspergillus, Curvularia, and Bipolaris. Despite the presence of aflatoxin-producing fungal samples, they did not present concerning levels for human consumption, and the germination rate was not affected regardless of storage structures. These results provide a baseline on fungi occurrence in stored MSR seeds from traditional facilities in Guinea-Bissau. Full article

Due to lack of apex predators in human-dominated landscapes, mesopredator relationships are complex and spatiotemporal niche partitioning strategies can vary, especially when seasonal shifts in resource availability occur. Our objective was to understand spatiotemporal niche overlap across seasons among mesopredators inhabiting a barrier island complex. We placed 19 unbaited cameras throughout Fort De Soto County Park, Florida, USA between February 2021 and July 2023. Of six mesopredator species detected, three species had >75 detections during both the wet and dry seasons (coyote, Canis latrans; Virginia opossum, Didelphis virginiana; and raccoon, Procyon lotor). Using general linear mixed models, we determined that during the wet season coyote–raccoon and raccoon–opossum detections were positively associated with each other (p < 0.05). During the dry season, raccoon–opossum detections were positively associated, and opossums were more likely to be detected around mangroves. After calculating coefficients of overlap, we found all three species varied their temporal activity between seasons. During the dry season exclusively, all three mesopredators occupied different temporal niches. The park’s isolated but developed nature has potentially led to a destabilized mesopredator community. Understanding seasonal mesopredator dynamics of Fort De Soto is particularly important because this park supports a high number of nesting shorebirds and sea turtles, which are known food sources for mesopredators. Full article

Nypa fruticans, commonly known as the Nipa palm, belongs to the true mangrove plants of the Arecaceae family. In China, it is naturally distributed only on Hainan Island and designated as a second-class National Key Protected Wild Plants List. Field research and indoor simulation experiments were systematically employed to study the resource status of N. fruticans and the adaptation of seed germination to environmental factors. The results showed that: (1) Four natural populations of N. fruticans, approximately 9319 trees within a total area of 3.96 hm², were distributed in Haikou, Wenchang, Qionghai, and Wanning on Hainan Island. Only the Wanning population was developed in small patches, while other populations were scattered sporadically. (2) A total of 23 mangrove species belonged to 19 genera in 13 families, which were recorded in all study sites, of which 18 were true mangroves and 5 were semi-mangrove species. The vertical structures of 4 N. fruticans communities exhibited the consistent pattern, characterized by distinct layers including the tree, shrub, and herb layers. However, notable differences in species composition and dominant species were observed among the layers of each community. (3) The population dynamics of N. fruticans in Haikou, Qionghai, and Wanning were declining, while the population in Wenchang was growing. (4) Seed germination of N. fruticans was not resistant to strong light and required some shade treatment with an optimal light intensity of 60%. The suitable salinity range for seed germination was 0‰ to 10‰. With the increase of salinity, the germination rate and seedling rate showed an increasing and then decreasing trend with maximum values of 63.3% and 50.0% at 5‰, which showed the sensitivity of seed germination to salinity, with low salinity promoting germination whereas high salinity inhibiting germination. Around 8 h/d of flooding time was most suitable for the seed germination, and 10 h/d was a critical flooding time. This study provides a theoretical basis for population recovery, resource utilization, and other further research of N. fruticans. Full article

Mangrove forests, apart from their carbon sequestration and coastal protection benefits, provide a wide range of ecosystem services to people in tropical developing countries. Local people living in and around forests in the developing tropics also depend heavily on these mangrove ecosystem services for their livelihoods. This study examines the impact of mangrove ecosystem services on the livelihoods of people in Indian part of the Sundarbans—the largest contagious mangrove forest on earth. To achieve this objective, a household survey was undertaken to gather data on the diverse range of provisioning and regulating ES local people derived from mangrove forests living near the Indian Sundarbans. Surveys were carried out in nine villages across the Kultali, Basanti, and Gosaba blocks, involving over one hundred respondents. Our study reveals the active participation of locals in gathering various ecosystem services, with fishing and crab collection being the most common in the area. Due to numerous challenges in the agricultural sector, such as soil salinity and frequent extreme weather events, people increasingly depend on non-farming incomes, particularly fishing. A questionnaire was used to assess the dependence of local people on different ecosystem services. Some villages, such as Amlamethi, Satyanarayanpur, Mathurakhand, Vivekananda Palli, and Second Scheme, demonstrated a higher reliance on forest ecosystem services compared to other villages. The study indicates that the contribution of ecosystem services sometimes surpasses traditional activities like farming and daily contractual work. River transportation emerged as the most crucial service, followed by freshwater, food, and fiber. While certain resources like fuel, natural medicine, and genetic resources may not be prioritized, they still hold significance within the community, contrasting with ornamental resources, which are considered the least important. Our findings underscore the importance of preserving natural services in the Sundarbans forest, highlighting the need to conserve the mangrove ecosystem services to ensure the long-term well-being of local communities. Full article

Spaceborne spectroscopic imaging offers the potential to improve our understanding of biodiversity and ecosystem services, particularly for challenging and rich environments like mangroves. Understanding the signals present in large volumes of high-dimensional spectroscopic observations of vegetation communities requires the characterization of seasonal phenology and response to environmental conditions. This analysis leverages both spectroscopic and phenological information to characterize vegetation communities in the Sundarban riverine mangrove forest of the Ganges–Brahmaputra delta. Parallel analyses of surface reflectance spectra from NASA’s EMIT imaging spectrometer and MODIS vegetation abundance time series (2000–2022) reveal the spectroscopic and phenological diversity of the Sundarban mangrove communities. A comparison of spectral and temporal feature spaces rendered with low-order principal components and 3D embeddings from Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP) reveals similar structures with multiple spectral and temporal endmembers and multiple internal amplitude continua for both EMIT reflectance and MODIS Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) phenology. The spectral and temporal feature spaces of the Sundarban represent independent observations sharing a common structure that is driven by the physical processes controlling tree canopy spectral properties and their temporal evolution. Spectral and phenological endmembers reside at the peripheries of the mangrove forest with multiple outward gradients in amplitude of reflectance and phenology within the forest. Longitudinal gradients of both phenology and reflectance amplitude coincide with LiDAR-derived gradients in tree canopy height and sub-canopy ground elevation, suggesting the influence of surface hydrology and sediment deposition. RGB composite maps of both linear (PC) and nonlinear (UMAP) 3D feature spaces reveal a strong contrast between the phenological and spectroscopic diversity of the eastern Sundarban and the less diverse western Sundarban. Full article

Microbial composition across substrates in mangroves, particularly in the Middle East, remains unclear. This study characterized bacterial communities in sediment, water, Terebralia palustris snail guts, and plastic associated with Avicennia marina mangrove forests in two coastal lagoons in the Sea of Oman using 16S rDNA gene MiSeq sequencing. The genus Vibrio dominated all substrates except water. In the gut of snails, Vibrio is composed of 80–99% of all bacterial genera. The water samples showed a different pattern, with the genus Sunxiuqinia being dominant in both Sawadi (50.80%) and Qurum (49.29%) lagoons. There were significant differences in bacterial communities on different substrata, in particular plastic. Snail guts harbored the highest number of unique Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) in both lagoons, accounting for 30.97% OTUs in Sawadi and 28.91% OTUs in Qurum, compared to other substrates. Plastic in the polluted Sawadi lagoon with low salinity harbored distinct genera such as Vibrio, Aestuariibacter, Zunongwangia, and Jeotgalibacillus, which were absent in the Qurum lagoon with higher salinity and lower pollution. Sawadi lagoon exhibited higher species diversity in sediment and plastic substrates, while Qurum lagoon demonstrated lower species diversity. The principal component analysis (PCA) indicates that environmental factors such as salinity, pH, and nutrient levels significantly influence bacterial community composition across substrates. Variations in organic matter and potential anthropogenic influences, particularly from plastics, further shape bacterial communities. This study highlights the complex microbial communities in mangrove ecosystems, emphasizing the importance of considering multiple substrates in mangrove microbial ecology studies. The understanding of microbial dynamics and anthropogenic impacts is crucial for shaping effective conservation and management strategies in mangrove ecosystems, particularly in the face of environmental changes. Full article

Land use and land cover changes (LULCCs) are vital indicators for assessing the dynamic relationship between humans and nature, particularly in diverse and evolving landscapes. This study employs remote sensing (RS) data and machine learning algorithms (MLAs) to investigate LULCC dynamics within the Indus River Delta region of Sindh, Pakistan. The focus is on tracking the trajectories of land use changes within mangrove forests and associated ecosystem services over twenty years. Our findings reveal a modest improvement in mangrove forest cover in specific areas, with an increase from 0.28% to 0.4%, alongside a slight expansion of wetland areas from 2.95% to 3.19%. However, significant increases in cropland, increasing from 22.76% to 28.14%, and built-up areas, increasing from 0.71% to 1.66%, pose risks such as altered sedimentation and runoff patterns as well as habitat degradation. Additionally, decreases in barren land from 57.10% to 52.7% and a reduction in rangeland from 16.16% to 13.92% indicate intensified land use conversion and logging activities. This study highlights the vulnerability of mangrove ecosystems in the Indus Delta to agricultural expansion, urbanization, resource exploitation, and land mismanagement. Recommendations include harmonizing developmental ambitions with ecological conservation, prioritizing integrated coastal area management, reinforcing mangrove protection measures, and implementing sustainable land use planning practices. These actions are essential for ensuring the long-term sustainability of the region’s ecosystems and human communities. Full article

Mercury (Hg) methylation in mangrove sediments can result in the accumulation of neurotoxic methylmercury (MeHg). Identification of Hg methyltransferase gene hgcA provides the means to directly characterize the microbial Hg-methylating consortia in environments. Hitherto, the microbial Hg-methylating community in mangrove sediments was scarcely investigated. An effort to assess the diversity and abundance of hgcA genes and transcripts and link them to Hg and MeHg contents was made in the mangrove intertidal sediments along the urbanized Shenzhen Bay, China. The hgcA genes and transcripts associated with Thermodesulfobacteria [mainly Geobacteraceae, Syntrophorhabdaceae, Desulfobacterales, and Desulfarculales (these four lineages were previously classified into the Deltaproteobacteria taxon)], as well as Euryarchaeota (mainly Methanomicrobia and Theionarchaea) dominated the hgcA-harboring communities, while Chloroflexota, Nitrospirota, Planctomycetota, and Lentisphaerota-like hgcA sequences accounted for a small proportion. The hgcA genes appeared in greater abundance and diversity than their transcript counterparts in each sampling site. Correlation analysis demonstrated that the MeHg content rather than Hg content significantly correlated with the structure of the existent/active hgcA-harboring community and the abundance of hgcA genes/transcripts. These findings provide better insights into the microbial Hg methylation drivers in mangrove sediments, which could be helpful for understanding the MeHg biotransformation therein. Full article

Mangrove forests provide a wide range of goods and services that sustain communities around the world. This paper explores utilization patterns of extractable mangrove resources by communities within the proposed Kenya–Tanzania transboundary conservation area (TBCA). Some 152 household surveys and 12 nominal group technique discussions were carried out. At least 16 direct-use products were reported to be extracted from the mangroves, with 90% of households found to use mangrove products. Changing patterns of mangrove use in the areas and accessibility point towards unsustainable utilization and promote illegal activities. Mangrove use patterns also show a high level of mangrove dependence by communities for their livelihood. Overharvesting of mangrove wood products is reported to be the major threat facing the forests. There is a need to address the problems of open access through capacity building and awareness creation, development and implementation of harvest plans, and introduction of alternative livelihood options. The results of this study can be used to inform development of the proposed TBCA as well as the establishment of a conservation policy in order to contribute to sustainable utilization of mangroves. These findings are important within the TBCA as well as similar environments around the world. Full article

Mangroves are important coastal wetlands along tropical and subtropical regions. Pneumatophore, a kind of aerial root, is among the prominent components of a mangrove ecosystem, which provides microhabitats for a range of prokaryotic (bacteria and cyanobacteria) microbial assemblages, whose role in the maintenance of mangrove ecology often remains neglected. Very few studies are available on pneumatophore-associated prokaryotic microorganisms (PAPMs). The majority of them are related to the microscopic identification of cyanobacteria, with very limited research on the bacterial population, even though they demand more attention. Also, very scarce information is available on biotic and abiotic factors shaping the PAPMs. The objective of this review is to highlight the structural and functional importance of prokaryotic organisms associated with pneumatophores. This review begins with a brief introduction of what mangrove pneumatophores are, then focuses on the PAPMs, accentuating the breadth and depth of information gained from previous research. We further discuss how a combination of a traditional cultivable approach and a newly developed omics approach can be efficaciously employed to untangle PAPMs. This review provides updated information on PAPMs, which will intensify the visibility and necessity of pneumatophore-associated microbial community research. Full article