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Malia Provencio

Mrs. Nourrie

English 11

March 31st, 2022

Mangrooving a Path in the Making

Mangroves are an interesting species found both to be helpful and deadly to an

environment that it is inhabiting. They can impact multiple environments on a large scale, yet it

is our job to study and research them to help and improve our environment. The history,

environmental impacts, and what others are doing now to help the environment with Red

Mangroves are being perplexed to our native species. The invasive impacts that the Red

Mangroves cause on the different environments on our islands can be detrimental to our future as

a community.

Mangroves have cultivated our ecosystems for countless years, migrating both naturally

and with human help. But in places such as Hawaii, they're seen more as a problem than

anything, “Red mangrove in Hawai’i is a highly invasive alien that contributes to decreased

water quality by dropping large amounts of organic matter” (Malama O Puna). Articles like

these, provide insight on impacts and solitons to regulating Red Mangroves in many places such

as Hawaii. Explaining, why red mangroves are growing at such a rapid rate here in Hawaii and

how that has impacted us negatively more than other states. Diving into where the problem

started occurring, along coastlines such as Oahu and Moloka’i. When researching more on this

topic we came to ask a worker from the Paepae Fishponds why the Red Mangrove were

introduced here and why they worked in other environments rather than ours?
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“Whelp Red Mangrove is native to the Gulf of Mexico. So, all of the states and countries,

kind of surround the Gulf. So, like South America, Texas, and Florida. All those places, that's

where Red Mangrove is native. There are entire ecosystems that have evolved to go along with

that species. Just like here, we have entire… we have native birds, we have native insects that

have evolved to live alongside and work on in our Ohia and Koa…and our keystone native

forests. But yeah… you know…you introduce something to Hawaii where it doesn't have

naturally occurring predators or thongs to keep it in check. Then yea… That's when it becomes

an invasive species, right? But yeah. Elsewhere in the world, I've met people in places like

Cohen and Indonesia or you know, Palau and Yap. There's like 100 Papua New Guinea where

there's like hundreds of species of Mangrove… and it's all native to that country. And in those

places, their actively protected and they are laws go places they're actively protected and there

are laws to prevent cutting down our utilization of those species. So those are examples of places

where they belong.” (Hi’ilei Kawelo).

Since the introduction of the Red Mangrove, native creatures and landscapes have

changed drastically for the worse. The erosion that has affected the land makes it difficult for

native plants to cultivate or survive in these areas. Other places Mangroves were introduced to on

the island, “In 1902, Rhizophora mangle was introduced on the island of Molokai, primarily for

the purpose of stabilizing coastal mudflats. This species is now well established in Hawaii and is

found on nearly all of the major islands.” (Allen, James A.). This in the end came to be a major

problem than a success for coastlines. These Mangroves spread like a virus, affecting the land

and agriculture around it barely being able to stop. The origin of their existence is believed to
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have come from Southern Asia, then spreading to India and Australia believed to have dated

back to nearly 114 million years ago. Their name ‘Mangrove’ branched off from the words

‘mangue’ and ‘grove’ in Senegalese, Portuguese and English. Through the impact of mangroves,

they’ve helped populate and flourish our ecosystems and our understandings of them, “The area

has peculiar community structure, diversity, rarity, etc. Coastal belt from Valapattanam to

Payyannur or Kannur to the district form the richest region with respect to the extent of

occurrence, structural dynamics, abundance, pattern or distribution, ecosystem health, etc.” (P.

Sujanapa & N Sasi Dharan). Through the different varieties of Mangrove, their tolerance,

strength, and weaknesses are all different and yet similar to one another. Through things like

their leaf shape, bark color, vine pattern, or their bark density while mangroves can be seen to be

all quite different their all the same in a sense, and through diversity, the ecosystem prospers. But

recently the growth of mangroves has been diminishing, causing slight havoc in these

ecosystems. Runoff off and other harmful chemicals can disrupt “sweet water”: water in which

the mangroves thrive. Causing it to wash away, leading to a decline in mangroves, “Mangroves

have been slowly decreasing in some ecosystems proving to be a problem for these regions, Loss

of the natural mangrove forests has led to erosion of Suriname’s muddy coastline. Fed by silt

washed from the mouth of the Amazon, the land should be growing, not disappearing.” (Erin

Kasdin). These mangroves in those regions help many people and things from countless

catastrophes that occur. While their impact on environments has been prominent, will be

exploring what their impact is on the ecosystem.

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While dangerously invasive to places like Hawaii, the Red Mangroves are seen as savors

to other states. Used to keep many things like weather disasters and preservation of organisms at

bay. In Hawaii, they come to be a big problem because of their rapid spreading pace and how

they change the land around them. By removing the Red Mangrove, in Hawaii, the ecosystem

can begin to thrive once more, “Benefits include elimination of annual shedding of mangrove

biomass into tidal waters and a resulting improvement in water quality; removal of a direct threat

to coral reef ecosystem from shading and physical obstruction by mangroves; expected

ecosystem benefits include recovery and protection of native fish populations, recovery and

protection of shorebird habitat, improvement of green sea turtle* and monk seal* habitats,

protection and recovery of Ischaemum biome, beach grass”. (Malama O Puna). The list of

benefits for their termination on the island can go on and on, making you wonder why they were

even introduced here in the first place. While the mangroves were introduced for an honest

cause, the red mangroves exceed the normal growth rate then in places like Florida, Australia,

etc. Because of this, they grow amuck here on the island, they’re greatly impacting the fish and

wildlife community. With the help of organizations such as the Paepae that are trying to uncover

the He‘eia fishpond from all the invasive Red Mangrove, it would have spread like wildfire. We

asked them in an interview “If not for organizations like these how bad would the infestation of

Mangrove have been? Um…It was pretty terrible; the entire fishpond was covered in Mangrove

so bad you couldn't even see the like you couldn't see the horizon. Probably without people being

here at the fishpond and left to continue to grow probably the entire fishpond would be filled In

with Mangrove and sediment. And then wouldn't even have a watery environment. We wouldn't

have been able to fish and that would have implications on the structural integrity of the wall

itself. I think that the fishpond would have…You know, give it another year. If our organization
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hadn’t been here, the entire fishpond would have been gone.” (Hi’ilei Kawelo). From the time

they were introduced to now a lot has changed around the land. From the soil to the water around

the coast, the Mangrove had terraformed the whole area making it nearly unhabitable by other

species. But while these invasive trees are seen as a harmful species on the island, they are

helpful to others, “Seagrasses and Mangroves stabilize coastal sediments and create buffers

against storms, surges, and flooding’s. They remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, filter

contaminants from coastal waters, and add value to local economies.” (Peter Thomas). Other

benefits that can be found are “Mangrove also prevent soil erosion, and can be the first defense

between storm surges, tsunamis, and the millions of people who live next to these forests for

their day-to-day survival.” (Naidu, A.). With all these helpful benefits that these trees provide it

is easier to understand why they are introduced to many environments. Mangroves are sought as

life saviors in these regions, helping protect, nurture, and shelter against threats both to nature

and humanity. Through the impact of mangroves, they’ve helped populate and flourish our

ecosystems and our understanding of them. But within recent years the mangroves have been

calculated to have been on a steep decline at rapid pacing. Brings together many organizations

who want to help their cause time to join together to protect these habitats “otherwise it would

jeopardize the biodiversity and coastal ecosystem.” (P. Sujanapa & N Sasi Dharan). People all

around the world are doing things to help and save their ecosystems, from doing things like

spreading awareness in parks and Museums to volunteering in nature societies. At the end of the

day, where these Red Mangroves were places, they play a role in their environment. Whether

that be good or bad all depends on what people can do to help their ecosystem.

With help from volunteers, environmental organizations, and the support from others we

can help change so much in our ecosystem. With the gracious help from others around the world,
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we can help propagate our environment in our very own communities. Taking places like

Hawaii, stopping this widespread invasive Red Mangrove is vitally important to ensure the

survival of our native species, “Because mangrove propagules are only viable for 3 months off

the tree, once they have been removed from an area for that long, repopulation can only happen

if propagules wash in again from elsewhere”. Removing the Red Mangrove in Hawaii can

greatly improve the natural habitat and those that inhabit the environment. So that we can replace

the Red Mangrove with native species to recultivate them in that ecosystem. Any help for this

community service is much appreciated and is necessary. From young kids to adults all helping

hands are necessary if we are to help shape our environment. To just clear a couple of feet of

Mangrove, it won't take much time at all, “Umm…Well if it was like when you guys were doing

it and they were seedlings. It would take, like with your guys ten minutes to clear a couple of feet

of seedlings. If it's a tree, it'll take way longer. It’ll take a lot of like, figuring out what to cut and

how to cut it, if that makes sense. A lot of work goes into taking down each tree because of the

way they grow. They have all these prop roots that come out so, it doesn't ensure that the tree

will fall. You know, like one direction or another. They’re shaped so weirdly, so it makes it

dangerous for whoever is trying to clear it. So yeah, it could take like three minutes…Like

logistically think about that, but just a couple feet is really easy.” (Rachelle Tom). But besides

places like Hawaii, Red Mangroves as well as their other species seem to flourish and cultivate.

Need the ability to heal, rebuild, and evolve but as we can see through evolution that takes a long

time to do. So that’s where we lend a helping hand to our environment within communities and

nature organizations, “Coastal wetlands are, super vulnerable to a lot of different aspects of

climate change and also land-use change, so my work has focused on different components of

that change.” (Michael Osland). How they grow and flourish is heavily influenced by the tide
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and sea level or the ocean, if the water goes inwards the mangrove follows if they got closer to

the shore they follow. From protecting these ecosystems from storms, floods, and other natural to

unnatural catastrophes. They are also the cause of the destruction of land, organisms living there,

and overgrowth that can affect the environment for a long while. Ensuring to protect the structure

from any major coastal impact, for the preservation of natural land, resources, and organisms so

it is important to keep them tamed. Greenhouses are built to nurture saplings to the age where

they can grow freely once replanted, “The plants are grown in special greenhouses from seeds

gathered along the coast. Once ready, the seedlings are planted in the mud with splints to protect

them from the waves.” (Erin Kasdin). Seeds are provided before sending them off to the coast,

they also explain they use that same water-resistant wood to build the greenhouses saying that.

With even a little bit of assistance, we can do a whole lot for the environment for the better. With

the proper knowledge, tools, and helping hands we can help restore our environments to their

proper glory.

The invasive impacts that the Red Mangroves have caused on the different environments

on our islands are done in severity or ways. The impact of the Red Mangroves has saved and

caused stress to multiple environments on a large scale, yet it is our job to research them to help

and improve our environment. To help fix and get back to a healthier planet we have to take care

of our history, environmental impacts, and other ways we can help our environments. While it

might seem small these steps are just the starting steps to a refurbished path in the making.
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Cited Page:

YouTube. (2021, July 2). Coastal Habitat Transformation - interview of dr. Mike Osland by
Justine Neville. YouTube. Retrieved March 21, 2022, from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4R8zb_5p0us

Handbook on mangroves and mangrove associates of Kerala. Handbook on Mangroves and

Mangrove Associates of Kerala | Exotic India Art. (n.d.). Retrieved March 15, 2022, from
https://www.exoticindiaart.com/book/details/handbook-on-mangroves-and-mangrove-
associates-of-kerala-mzv322/?
sitecurrency=USD&gclid=CjwKCAjw8sCRBhA6EiwA6_IF4bhQ2Pg6AVCn4nVF2krn9i
pajDbl5Y3UAfcdVex3vvb3LBacB5PLdRoCqA8QAvD_BwE

Preface mangrove ecology - harvardforest1.fas.harvard.edu. (n.d.). Retrieved March 8, 2022,

from https://harvardforest1.fas.harvard.edu/sites/harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/files/
publications/pdfs/Ellison_AquatBot_2008.pdf

14, E. K. J., & Kasdin, E. (n.d.). Managing mangroves. Lion Magazine. Retrieved March 2,
2022, from https://lionmagazine.org/articles/managing-mangroves/

Seagrasses and mangroves - full episode - youtube. (n.d.). Retrieved February 24, 2022, from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mb4wE3UIfs

Naidu, A. (n.d.). The link between fishing cats and mangrove forest conservation. Ashwin Naidu:
The link between fishing cats and mangrove forest conservation | TED Talk. Retrieved
February 17, 2022, from
https://www.ted.com/talks/ashwin_naidu_the_link_between_fishing_cats_and_mangrove_f
orest_conservation?language=en

Wester, L. (2014, October 1). Introduction and spread of mangroves in the Hawaiian Islands.
Yearbook of the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers. Retrieved February 11, 2022,
from https://muse.jhu.edu/article/431539

Mangrove removal: Wai'opae. Malama O Puna. (n.d.). Retrieved February 7, 2022, from
https://malamaopuna.org/our-work/past-work/mangrove-removal-waiopae/