Mangroves on Aldabra

Abstract
Mangrove trees grow only on sheltered coasts, hence on Aldabra they occur along the shores of the lagoon. In these mangrove communities four species are common and were found in each locality visited. These are Avicennia marina (Forsk.) Vierh., Bruguiera gymnorhiza (L.) Lam., Ceriops tagal (Perr.) C.B. Rob., and Rhizophora mucronata Lam. In a few localities only, these are accompanied by one or other of Lumnitzera racemosa Willd., Sonneratia albaj. Sm., or Xylocarpus granatum Koen. The fern Acrostichum aureum L. is abundant on Aldabra, sometimes in association with mangroves but more commonly among the maritime scrub where it tends to occur in crevices and solution holes at a slightly lower level than the trees and shrubs of the scrub. Mangroves occur almost all round the lagoon shores, more commonly in some places than in others, more luxuriantly in some places than in others. Along only a few rocky stretches of the lagoon shores are they absent. Nowhere on the island is there a complete pattern of the zonation described for other Indian Ocean shores by Macnae (1968). On Aldabra the landward fringe is well developed only in one locality and the seaward fringes have rarely developed.

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