They say falling in love is one of the greatest feelings. I always had the notion I'd fall in love with people, I never thought I'd fall in love with a place. I guess I was wrong. Hence, this evening, I shall begin with something close to home & closest to my heart:
THE MAD, MAD MANGROVE!
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| Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve at high-tide (Photo taken by Joeline Lim. April 2014) |
The madness begins with my encounter with a mangrove. My first experience in the mudflats probably wasn't the cleanest, but it was one hell of an experience! It included trudging through knee-high mud & marinating in the stench of sulphide! But let me assure you, it was all worth it!
You don't need statistics to tell you the richness of its biodiversity, you simply need to open your eyes to observe all the life around you -Footprints of migratory birds, brightly-coloured crabs, worms, camouflaged horseshoe crabs, crocodiles, mud-skippers, snakes, fireflies (Yes, there are fireflies!!), etc. You'd probably figure out that the biodiversity per unit area in mangroves is MAD! It really is that blatant & brilliant - brilliantly blatant & blatantly brilliant!
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| Unknown Bug (Photo taken by Joeline Lim. March 2014) |
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| Tree-climbing Crab (Photo taken by Joeline Lim. February 2014) |
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| Monitor Lizard (Photo taken by Joeline Lim. February 2014) |
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| Underside of a Horseshoe Crab (Photo taken by Joeline Lim. February 2014) |
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| Estuarine Crocodile (Photo taken by Joeline Lim. April 2014) |
Mangroves are located in the inter-tidal zones of sheltered shores, estuaries, tidal creeks, backwaters, lagoons, marshes & mudflats of the tropical & subtropical latitudes [2]. They are characterised by pretty mad conditions: (1) High salinity (2) Water-logged, anaerobic soil (3) Fluctuating tides.Yet these are the very conditions that make them so, so special (to me, at least)!
It is a beautiful privilege to be able see how organisms have adapted to such mad conditions!
You can find tree-climbing crabs climbing trees during high tide to keep from drowning. I was told that you can predict the incoming tide level just by observing how high these crabs climb.
Additionally, mangrove plants have adapted to the high salinity environment by excreting excess salt through their leaves! (So there was one fine day, I tried licking a leaf of an Avicennia to taste it for myself; YES! IT WAS SALTY!) & the leaves of the Excoecaria Agollocha (commonly known as 'Buta Buta') turns from a lush green to a bright orange-red when excess salt has accumulated in it & eventually sheds its salty leaves!
You see, my dear friend, it's in these little details of a place that makes it all the more beautiful!
Be sure to stay-tune for Mad Mangroves: Part II!
References:
- [1] World Wildlife Fund. 2013. WWF- Major Habitat Types. [ONLINE] Available at:http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/about/habitat_types/. [Accessed 31 August 14].
- [2] -, S. Sandilyan, K. Kathlresan, 2012. Mangrove Conservation: A Global Perspective. Biodiversity Conservation, -, -.
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