The Dynamics, Ecological Variability and Estimated Carbon Stocks of Mangroves in Mahajamba Bay, Madagascar

Journal of Marine Science and Engineering

Trevor G. Jones³  Harifidy Rakoto Ratsimba⁴  Lalao Ravaoarinorotsihoarana³  Leah Glass³  Lisa Benson³  Marianne Teoh⁵  Aude Carro³  Garth Cripps³  Chandra Giri¹  Samir Gandhi³  Zo Andriamahenina³  Rado Rakotomanana³  Pierre-Francois Roy² 

[1] United States Geological Survey, Earth Resources Observation and Science Center, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA; E-Mail:;Catholic Institute of Arts and Crafts, 75 Avenue de Grande Bretagne, Toulouse 313000, France; E-Mail:;Blue Ventures Conservation, Villa Bella Fiharena, Rue Gambetta, Lot 259, Toliara 601, Madagascar; E-Mails:;Department of Forestry, University of Antananarivo, PO Box 175, Antananarivo 101, Madagascar; E-Mail:;The Song Saa Foundation 108 e1, Street 19, Phnom Penh 12206, Cambodia; E-Mail:

关键词: Madagascar;    mangrove;    carbon;    Landsat;    dynamics;    coastal;    Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES);   

DOI  :  10.3390/jmse3030793

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Mangroves are found throughout the tropics, providing critical ecosystem goods and services to coastal communities and supporting rich biodiversity. Globally, mangroves are being rapidly degraded and deforested at rates exceeding loss in many tropical inland forests. Madagascar contains around 2% of the global distribution, >20% of which has been deforested since 1990, primarily from over-harvest for forest products and conversion for agriculture and aquaculture. While historically not prominent, mangrove loss in Madagascar’s Mahajamba Bay is increasing. Here, we focus on Mahajamba Bay, presenting long-term dynamics calculated using United States Geological Survey (USGS) national-level mangrove maps contextualized with socio-economic research and ground observations, and the results of contemporary (circa 2011) mapping of dominant mangrove types. The analysis of the USGS data indicated 1050 hectares (3.8%) lost from 2000 to 2010, which socio-economic research suggests is increasingly driven by commercial timber extraction. Contemporary mapping results permitted stratified sampling based on spectrally distinct and ecologically meaningful mangrove types, allowing for the first-ever vegetation carbon stock estimates for Mahajamba Bay. The overall mean carbon stock across all mangrove classes was estimated to be 100.97 ± 10.49 Mg C ha⁻¹. High stature closed-canopy mangroves had the highest average carbon stock estimate (i.e., 166.82 ± 15.28 Mg C ha⁻¹). These estimates are comparable to other published values in Madagascar and elsewhere in the Western Indian Ocean and demonstrate the ecological variability of Mahajamba Bay’s mangroves and their value towards climate change mitigation.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.