It's been a bumper year for mangroves, with existing forests thriving and plenty of young plants recolonising old locations and shooting up in new ones.
When you see a carpet of mangrove seedling, remember these will be thinned out by storms and tides, with only the stronger ones growing to maturity.
Adapted to brackish estuary environments, mangroves are vital to our coast, reducing erosion and providing habitat. Mangrove forests benefit us by:
- improving water quality - filtering up to 90 percent of pollutants
- tempering coastal erosion - reducing waves by as much as two thirds
- creating biodiversity hotspots - providing homes for up to 200 species of fish
- mitigating climate change - storing four times more carbon than rainforests.
You'll often see crabs in the mud of mangrove forests – it's a symbiotic relationship. As they burrow and feed they aerate the mud and cycle in nutrients, while the mangroves themselves feed and shelter the crabs.
Some notable mangrove sites in Eurobodalla can be found at Wagonga Inlet, Congo Creek, Candaglan Creek, Tuross Lake and the Moruya River and Clyde River Estuaries.
- This story was first published in Council's quarterly newsletter for residents, Living in Eurobodalla. A printed edition is delivered to Eurobodalla's 26,000 households.
