The trees and shrubs in mangrove forests absorb a substantial amount of greenhouse gas emissions, help protect communities from rising sea levels, and act as baby fish nurseries. They’re the world’s second most carbon rich ecosystem, able to store more than 1,000 tons of carbon in a sole hectare by capturing the chemical element from the air and storing it in leaves, branches, trunks and roots. In the upper reaches of the mangrove ecosystem, closer to land, organisms (fungi, beetle larvae, and termites) are breaking down fallen wood. Closer to the ocean, the large woody debris is being degraded more quickly by worm-like clams with calcium carbonate shells. Rising sea levels and an increase in ocean acidity can dissolve the shells of the marine organisms degrading the wood in the lower reaches.
Story Source: University of Portsmouth