Thorsten Dittmar

Mangroves

Mangroves fringe most of the tropical coasts worldwide, but they are generally considered hostile, foul smelling, muddy environments, which may explain why they have gained very little public and scientific attention compared to the colourful coral reefs or tropical rain forests. By applying molecular and isotopic tracer techniques I could show that mangroves play an unexpected role in the global carbon cycle. Mangroves alone may account for up to 20% of the organic carbon globally transported from the continents to the ocean. Their rapid decline over the recent decades may shut off this important link between land and ocean, with potential consequences for atmospheric composition and climate.

I performed my research on mangroves in Northern Brazil, adjacent to the estuary of the Amazon River. This mangrove area is one of the largest in the world and the mangroves there consist of very dense, well-developed forests with tree heights of up to 30m.

This research was performed within the framework of MADAM (Mangrove Dynamics and Management), a collaborative effort between Brazil and Germany (www.zmt.uni-bremen.de).

Boat Photo

Our research vessel in Brazil. Mangroves can be seen in the background.