Use the text and diagram below to outline 5 roles in the environment that the mangroves at Bobbin Head fulfill.

Mangrove Ecosystems

Mangrove ecosystems exist exclusively in intertidal zones. The soil is rich alluvial mud washed down from fresh water streams or rivers.  The nutrient levels in the mud are high due to prolific amounts of organic matter from mangrove trees dropping leaves. Salt water inundates the forest twice a day due to the tides.  Mangrove trees are able to exclude or excrete the salt enabling their survival in the salty environment.  Some species obtain oxygen in the waterlogged soil through pneumatophores, or breathing roots, which sit above the water.  Crabs feed on detritus washed in on the tides and dropped by mangrove trees.  They dig burrows to shelter in during high tide and graze on the mud flats at low tide.