The Sunda Shelf mangroves

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) is an ecological and geographic area that exists on multiple different levels, defined by type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and c ...

, in the

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen a ...

biome A biome () is a distinct geographical region with specific climate, vegetation, and animal life. It consists of a biological community that has formed in response to its physical environment and regional climate. In 1935, Tansley added the ...

, are on the coasts of the islands of

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

and eastern

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

and

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. They are home to the proboscis monkey. As well as being an important habitat for terrestrial and marine wildlife, mangroves preserve the shape of the coastline.

Flora

There are more plant species here than in most mangrove forests in the world, with five different types of mangrove dominating parts of the region as follows: ''

Avicennia ''Avicennia'' is a genus of flowering plants currently placed in the bear's breeches family, Acanthaceae. It contains mangrove trees, which occur in the intertidal zones of estuarine areas and are characterized by its "pencil roots", which ar ...

'' and '' Sonneratia'' species on the coast where water is saltiest and the tidal wash strongest; '' Rhizophoras'' and '' Bruguieras'' in the swampy areas just behind them; and ''

Nypa fruticans ''Nypa fruticans'', commonly known as the nipa palm (or simply nipa, from ) or mangrove palm, is a species of palm native to the coastlines and estuarine habitats of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the only palm considered adapted to the ...

'' palms in the freshwater streams further inland still.Wikramanayake, Eric
Sunda Shelf Mangroves
''One Earth''. Accessed 19 March 2023. About 28 species of mangroves trees grow in the ecoregion, including ''

Aegiceras corniculatum ''Aegiceras corniculatum'', commonly known as black mangrove, river mangrove, goat's horn mangrove, or khalsi, is a species of shrub or tree mangrove in the primrose family (biology), family, Primulaceae, with a distribution in coastal and estua ...

, Avicennia alba, Avicennia lanata, Avicennia marina, Avicennia officinalis, Bruguiera cylindrica, Bruguiera gymnorhiza, Bruguiera parviflora, Bruguiera sexangula, Ceriops decandra, Ceriops tagal,

Excoecaria agallocha ''Excoecaria agallocha'', a mangrove species, belongs to the genus ''Excoecaria'' of the family (biology), family Euphorbiaceae. The species has many common names, including blind-your-eye mangrove, blinding tree, buta buta tree, milky mangrove ...

Heritiera littoralis ''Heritiera littoralis'', commonly known as the looking-glass mangrove or tulip mangrove, is a mangrove tree in the family Malvaceae native to coastal areas of eastern Africa, Asia, Melanesia and northern Australia. The common name refers to the ...

Kandelia candel ''Kandelia candel'' is a species of mangrove in the family Rhizophoraceae, found around the coasts of South Asia and Southeast Asia, from western India to Borneo. Populations further east, from Vietnam to Japan were formerly included in ''K.&nbs ...

, Lumnitzera littorea, Lumnitzera racemosa, Nypa fruticans, Phoenix paludosa, Rhizophora apiculata, Rhizophora lamarckii,

Rhizophora mucronata ''Rhizophora mucronata'' (loop-root mangrove, red mangrove or Asiatic mangrove) is a species of mangrove found on coasts and river banks in East Africa and the Indo-Pacific region. Description ''Rhizophora mucronata'' is a small to medium si ...

, Rhizophora stylosa, Scyphiphora hydrophyllacea, Sonneratia alba, Sonneratia caseolaris, Sonneratia ovata, Xylocarpus granatum'', and '' Xylocarpus moluccensis''.

Fauna

Mammals of the mangroves include the proboscis monkey ('' Nasalis larvatus''), which is endemic to the Bornean mangroves and adjacent lowlands, and is absent from Sumatra. The mangroves are home to many birds, including the white-bellied sea eagle (''Haliaeetus leucogaster'') and

brahminy kite The brahminy kite (''Haliastur indus''), also known as the red-backed sea-eagle in Australia, is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal Bird of prey, raptors, such as eagles, buzzards, and h ...

(''Haliastur indus''), and species of herons, cormorants, plovers, sandpipers, kingfishers, terns, sunbirds, munias, and tailor birds.

Threats and preservation

Mangroves are vulnerable ecosystems as trees are cut for timber, firewood and to clear land for agriculture and urban development such as shrimp farming. This loss of habitat persists despite the mangroves being part of a large number of protected areas including: on Borneo

Bako National Park Bako National Park () is a national park in Kuching District, Kuching Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. Established in 1957, it is the oldest national park in Sarawak. It covers an area of at the tip of the Muara Tebas peninsula at the mouth of t ...

in Malaysia and Tanjung Puting and Gunung Palung National Parks in Indonesia, and on Sumatra Berbak and

Sembilang National Park Sembilang National Park is a national park covering 2,051 km2 along the east coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The park is dominated by swamps as peat forests, like the neighbouring Berbak National Park, and both parks are Ramsar Convention, Rams ...

s. Protected areas include: *

* Batumapun Forest Reserve * Berbak National Park * Binsuluk Forest Reserve * Bukau Api-Api Forest Reserve * Bukit Soeharto Grand Forest Park * Gunung Palung National Park * Gunung Pueh National Park * Kabili Sepilok Forest Reserve * Klias Forest Reserve * Kota Kinabalu Wetlands Nature Reserve * Kuala Lupak Wildlife Reserve * Kuching Wetlands National Park * Kulamba Forest Reserve * Kutai National Park * Lower Kinabatangan-Segama Wetlands * Malawaring Forest Reserve * Maludam National Park * Menumbok Forest Reserve * Miri-Sibuti Coral Reef National Park * Muara Kaman Sedulang Nature Reserve * Nunukan Nature Reserve * Pulau Siarau Nature Reserve * Rajang Mangrove National Park * Samunsam Widlife Reserve * Santubong National Park * Sebangau National Park *

* Sepilok (Mangrove) Forest Reserve * Sibuti Wildlife Reserve * Similajau National Park * Sungai Bulan dan Sungai Lulan Nature Reserve * Sungai Gologob Forest Reserve * Sungai Kapur Forest Reserve * Sungai Lasun & Pulau Evans Forest Reserve * Sungai Maruap Forest Reserve * Sungai Segama Forest Reserve * Sungai Serudong Forest Reserve * Tabin Wildlife Reserve * Tanjung Datu National Park * Tanjung Puting National Park * Tawau Forest Reserve * Teak Plantation Forest Reserve * Teluk Adang Nature Reserve * Teluk Apar Nature Reserve * Teluk Kelumpang, Selat Laut dan Selat Sebuku Nature Reserve * Teluk Pamukan Nature Reserve * Trusan Kinabatangan Forest Reserve * Tun Mustapha Park * Ulu Sebuyau National Park * Umas Umas Forest Reserve * Weston Forest Reserve

References

{{mangroves Central Indo-Pacific Ecoregions of Asia Ecoregions of Brunei Ecoregions of Indonesia Ecoregions of Malaysia * * * Forests of Indonesia Forests of Malaysia Indomalayan ecoregions Mangrove ecoregions Natural history of Brunei