On Saturday the 18th of January some ten volunteers, including pupils of the Ujima Foundation and the I CAN Children’s Home, assisted with the planting of additional Mangroves at the Simpson Bay Causeway. Although the Mangrove’s at the Causeway are doing very well, fifty additional juvenile plants were planted in areas that did not have sufficient Mangrove coverage. Volunteers were also given an explanation by the Nature Foundation on the importance of Mangroves and why it is important that Mangrove reforestation occurs.
Mangrove forests are under severe pressure and disappearing at an alarming rate and it is estimated that about 60% of the total mangrove areas have disappeared. All four species of mangroves were planted on Saturday namely Rhizophora mangle (Red mangrove), Avicennia germinans (Black mangrove), Laguncularia racemosa (White Mangrove) and Conocarpus erectus (Buttonwood).
Mangroves also act as a filter for water being washed off the land by preventing harmful sediments from smothering the coral reefs, including those of the Man of War Shoal Marine Protected Area. By establishing themselves successfully, the mangrove trees have the potential to become a thriving habitat for many other plants and animals as well as an important nursery for many species of fish.