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Mangroves in Australia Essay

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Mangroves in Australia

The mangrove communities of Australia are some of the most highly adaptive plant communities in the world. These plants live in an environment that is often engulfed with seawater. This environment is considered an arid environment due to the lack of fresh water. The plants of the mangrove community must develop several adaptations to deal with the environment. The environment these plants often inhabit is referred to as an intertidal zone. The intertidal zone is the transition between the salty ocean to the fresh water of the interior of the continent or island. To deal with the salty environment, mangrove plants have developed modified roots. In some species, the roots filter the incoming seawater. …show more content…

These organisms, in turn, replenish nutrients back to the environment, which feed other animals. It is apparent that the mangroves are the base of the food chain in this environment.

Introduction

The term mangrove doesn’t refer to a single plant species, but to a variety of them that share a similarity to one another. There are 54 recognized species that belong to 16 different families. A mangrove is considered to be woody trees or shrubs that flourish in mangals (Hogarth 1999). A mangal is referred to as an environment such as intertidal zones, muddy areas at river mouths, and other areas usually inundated (covered) with water. Silt deposits in these areas make it a suitable environment. Mangroves are considered to inhabit a harsh environment compared to other plants. Their roots are located in salty, waterlogged, and oxygen lacking soils. These areas are influenced by tidal action, so the water levels are fluctuating between high and low tides constantly (Talbot, Steene 1990). The mangroves are the most widely distributed environments in Australia. They are mostly tropical but have been found to survive in air temperatures as low as 5 degrees Celsius. Mangrove distribution is most closely correlated with sea temperature than air temperature (Hogarth 1999). Mangroves range from the Gascoyne River and Banbury in Western Australia, across the whole northern coast, down the east coast to

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