Mangroves of East Africa is an ecoregion of tropical mangroves growing along the east coast of Africa , in a narrow strip periodically flooded by tides of the Indian Ocean . They occupy a strip between the lowest water level at low tide and the highest at high tide - the littoral . The maximum width of the growing band of mangroves - 50 km. The maximum difference between the ebb and flow levels varies from 3.2–3.5 m in Tanzania to 5.6 m in Mozambique . Biogeographically, East African mangroves are associated with the western coast of Madagascar and South Africa [1] .
| Mangroves of East Africa | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Ecology | |
| Ecozone | Afrotropika |
| Biome | mangroves |
| Geography | |
| Square | 15,000 km² |
| Country |
|
| Preservation | |
| Global-200 | AT1402 |
Mangroves are divided into two main categories - growing along sea coasts and growing in river mouths , mainly in deltas. Seaside mangroves support the existence of coral reefs by cleansing water from excess nitrates and softening the damaging effects of waves. In the mouths of rivers, the tides penetrate far into the mainland, in large rivers up to 50 km, reach places with different forest growing conditions, which determines the mosaic pattern of their formations and contributes to greater biodiversity . Due to the vastness of the territories, river mangroves are important for bird migrations [1] .
Content
Climate
The subequatorial climate of East Africa is determined by the effects of monsoons carrying oceanic air masses on the mainland. Between April and October, the southeast monsoon dominates, bringing with it heavy showers, strong winds and high waves. The rest of the time is dominated by the northeast monsoon. The climate is not humid - the average annual rainfall is between 750 mm and 1500 mm, the largest amount falls in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. The lack of fresh water is compensated by the groundwater feeding the undercurrents, and as a result conditions are created for the development of mangroves [1] .
Vegetation
Despite the smaller territory, the flora of East African mangroves is more diverse than the flora of Mangroves on the west coast of Africa, the communities they form also differ. East African mangrove communities are formed by species characteristic of the flora of the coastal zone of the Indian Ocean, the flora of the coastal zones of the Atlantic Ocean is less rich. Eight species of mangrove trees are found throughout the region, each of which grows in places with a certain salinity, water level, soil acidity and oxygen content in soils. Avicennia marina grows on sandy soils, Rhizopora mucronata - on silty river soils. Ceriops tagal prefers drier places, Bruguiera gymnorrhiza - the wettest. Closer to the land boundary, in the zone of transition to salty water, Lumnitzera racemosa and Xylocarpus granatum grow. The first is the open coast of the Sonneratia alba , followed by the Heritiera littoralis and the Bruguiera [1] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 [1] "East African mangroves". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund