Plant community composition can impact ecosystem processes via litter feedbacks. Species variation in litter quality may generate diff erent patterns of nutrient supply for plants that are dependent on litter inputs. However, it is not known whether plants grow faster in their own litter, litter from other species, or in litter mixtures from multiple species. To test whether litter identity and...

The mangrove formations of Godavari estuary are due to silting over many centuries. The estuary covers an area of 62,000 ha of which dense Coringa mangrove forest spread in 6,600 ha. Satellite sensor data was used to detect change in the mangrove cover for a period of 12 years (1992-2004). It was found that an area of about 1,250 ha of mangroves was destroyed by anthropogenic interference like ...

Hahella sp. strain CCB-MM4 is a halophilic bacterium isolated from estuarine mangrove sediment. The genome sequence of Hahella sp. CCB-MM4 provides insights into exopolysaccharide biosynthesis and the lifestyle of the bacterium thriving in a saline mangrove environment.

Mangrove forests, though essentially common and wide-spread, are highly threatened. Local societies along with their knowledge about the mangrove also are endangered, while they are still underrepresented as scientific research topics. With the present study we document local utilization patterns, and perception of ecosystem change. We illustrate how information generated by ethnobiological res...

Landscape-level shifts in plant species distribution and abundance can fundamentally change the ecology of an ecosystem. Such shifts are occurring within mangrove-marsh ecotones, where over the last few decades, relatively mild winters have led to mangrove expansion into areas previously occupied by salt marsh plants. On the Texas (USA) coast of the western Gulf of Mexico, most cases of mangrov...

Intertidal mangrove ecosystems are sensitive to climate change impacts, particularly to associated relative sea level rise. Human stressors and low tidal range add to vulnerability, both characteristics of the Doula Estuary, Cameroon. To investigate vulnerability, spatial techniques were combined with ground surveys to map distributions of mangrove zones, and compare with historical spatial rec...

Environment and development issues are complex and interdependent. Institutions underpinning state, private sector and civil society actions at various levels must address complexity to ensure social-ecological system integrity. However, responses often operate at only one governance level, with limited interactions with other levels, restricting their ability to support communities who depend ...