10 July 2019

Dotted along Western Port’s shoreline, the White mangrove (Avicennia marina) plays a vital role in protecting the health of this internationally significant Ramsar-listed wetland.

The White mangrove communities of Western Port are some of the most southerly examples of the species globally.  An assessment completed in 2016 indicated that mangroves cover an area of approximately 1,700 hectares.

The Port Phillip & Westernport CMA has been working collaboratively with stakeholders and the community through the Ramsar Protection Program to help preserve these amazing landscapes by planting mangroves and constructing fences to manage domestic stock access.

Pneumatophores, seen here in the foreground, act as breathing tubes for mangroves to obtain oxygen directly for the air.

 

Mature mangroves provide shoreline protection and assist with sediment accumulation, critical to preventing erosion during high intensity storm and wave surge events.

 

Mangroves provide habitat for a diverse range of marine and terrestrial plants and animals, whilst providing an enormous sink for carbon sequestration.