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Mangrove ecosystems

Mangrove comes from a combination of the Portuguese word mangue and the English word grove. In Portuguese, the word mangrove is used for individual plant species, while mangal is used for the forest community. In English, mangrove is defined as trees that grow in coastal areas or other associated plants. Other terms used to refer to mangrove forests include coastal woodland, mangal, and tidal forest. Mangroves are a coastal tropical vegetation community that lives in estuaries, rivers, lagoons, and intertidal zones with muddy or sandy-mud substrate. Mangroves are classified as higher plants that have the potential for abundant organic matter content, nitrogen, and sulfur compounds used by microorganisms for growth.

Mangrove ecosystems are classified as intertidal ecosystems where there is strong interaction between seawater, brackish water, rivers, and terrestrial areas. Mangroves live in tropical and subtropical climate zones and play a role in ecological, social, and economic systems. Mangrove ecosystems also play an important role as habitats for various organisms. Mangrove forests generally have vegetation that is physiologically adaptable to high salinity, structure, tidal conditions, and substrate composition, such as Rhizophora sp. and Avicennia alba. Mangroves consist of major mangroves, minor mangroves, and associated mangroves. Mangrove genera that grow on alluvial muddy soil in river estuaries influenced by tides include Avicennia, Sonneratia, Rhizophora, Bruguiera, Ceriops, Lumnitzera, Xylocarpus, Aegiceras, Nypa, Scyphyphora, and Excoecaria

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