Mangroves are known as "Kandal Kadu" in Malayalam.

Walking Trees

Mangroves are also called as walking trees. Mangrove habitats spread by sending down roots from its branches.These walking trees fall in the category of something called halophytes, which essentially means that they can tolerate high volumes of water for a long time. They can also survive the high salinity conditions, which are common in the coastal environments that are influenced by tides.

Largest Mangrove Forest

Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest.Sundarban forest is situated between Bangladesh and India.

Mangrove Destruction In Kerala - News

Please stop cutting down the mangroves in kuruvangad coast near koyilandy. Other wise it will cut you down in futue.

Mangroves - Buffer b/w violent ocean and the fragile coast

Mangroves are excellent buffers between the violent ocean and the fragile coast, especially during hurricanes, which can bring powerful storm surges onto shores. The massive mangrove root system is quite efficient at dissipating wave energy. This same root system also helps prevent coastal erosion. As tidal water flows through the root system, it is slowed substantially enough so that it deposits its sediment as the tide comes in, and the return flow is kept slow as the tide goes out to prevent re suspension of some of the finer particles. As a result, mangroves can build their own environment. Because of the uniqueness of the mangrove ecosystems, they are frequently the object of conservation programs including national Biodiversity Action Plans.

Mangroves - The fish breeding areas

Many people, and especially fishers, know that mangroves are important fish breeding areas as well as nursery grounds for juvenile fish. Many of the fish we eat from our coral reefs actually start out by hiding and feeding in the mangroves and then moving onto the reefs when they get big enough. This includes all of the fish listed above as well as snappers, longmaot, mustasfis, redmaot, sweetlips, sawfish and some loche.

mangroves- some statistics

In India mangroves are found mainly in West Bengal- 4,200 Square kilometers, Andaman & Nichobar Island-1,190 square kilometers, Maharastra-330 square kilometers, Gujarat- 260 square kilometers, Goa-200 square kilometers, Andhra Pradesh-200 square kilometers, Orissa-150 square kilometers, Tamil Nadu-150 square kilometers, Karnataka-60 square kilometers and Kerala-17 square kilometers.

Mangrove Varieties

There are 44 types of mangroves and 15 mangrove associates which grow along with the mangroves. Other than in India, mangroves are found in rich quantities in Brazil, Indonesia, Australia, Nigeria, Philippines, and the United States of America.

Mangroves-an ecotone between land and water

Mangrove ecosystems

Mangroves support unique ecosystems, especially on their intricate root systems. In areas where roots are permanently submerged, mangroves may be host to a wide variety of organisms, including algae, barnacles, oysters, sponges, and bryozoans, which all require a hard substratum for anchoring while they filter feed. Mangrove crabs improve the nutritional quality of the mangle muds for other bottom feeders by mulching the mangrove leaves.( for more read wikipedia)

Bhitarkanika Mangroves

From the community Bhitarkanika Mangroves . please do join in this community.

Bhitarkanika mangroves are one of the complex and fragile mangrove ecosystems in India which is represented by as many as 3 Protected Areas, namely Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary, Bhitarkanika National Park and Gahirmatha (Marine) Sanctuary. Of the 72 species of mangroves identified world over, 62 species thrive here. This area harbours the world’s largest rookery for olive ridley sea turtles and a sizable population of the endangered salt water crocodile. The area also hosts significant population of king cobras, horse shoe crabs, 3 species of monitor lizards, large and diverse population of resident and migratory birds. This is the only place in the country where you get to see eight species of kingfishers at one place. This area was notified as a Ramsar site recently and has been identified as Important Bird Area of the country.

Mangroves provide biodiversity

Mangroves are trees or shrubs that grows in shallow and muddy salt water, especially along quiet shorelines and in estuaries. Typically they produce tangled masses of arching roots that are exposed during low tides. Some mangrove roots extend above the water. These specialized vertical branches, called pneumatophores, act as aerating organs. ( Refer encarta for more )

Pokkudan - Man behind mangroves

No need of any introduction for pokkudan, a well known figure in kerala working for the conservation of mangroves and its implantation...please read pokkudan's auto biography to know more about him.....