Abstract

Mangrove forests provide many ecosystem services but are among the world’s most threatened ecosystems. Mangroves vary substantially according to their geomorphic and sedimentary setting; while several conceptual frameworks describe these settings, their spatial distribution has not been quantified. Here, we present a new global mangrove biophysical typology and show that, based on their 2016 extent, 40.5% (54,972 km2) of mangrove systems were deltaic, 27.5% (37,411 km2) were estuarine and 21.0% (28,493 km2) were open coast, with lagoonal mangroves the least abundant (11.0%, 14,993 km2). Mangroves were also classified based on their sedimentary setting, with carbonate mangroves being less abundant than terrigenous, representing just 9.6% of global coverage. Our typology provides a basis for future research to incorporate geomorphic and sedimentary setting in analyses. We present two examples of such applications. Firstly, based on change in extent between 1996 and 2016, we show while all types exhibited considerable declines in area, losses of lagoonal mangroves (− 6.9%) were nearly twice that of other types. Secondly, we quantify differences in aboveground biomass between mangroves of different types, with it being significantly lower in lagoonal mangroves. Overall, our biophysical typology provides a baseline for assessing restoration potential and for quantifying mangrove ecosystem service provision.

Details

Title
A global biophysical typology of mangroves and its relevance for ecosystem structure and deforestation
Author
Worthington, Thomas A 1 ; zu Ermgassen Philine S E 2 ; Friess, Daniel A 3 ; Krauss, Ken W 4 ; Lovelock, Catherine E 5 ; Thorley, Julia 6 ; Tingey, Rick 7 ; Woodroffe, Colin D 8 ; Bunting, Pete 9 ; Cormier, Nicole 10 ; Lagomasino, David 11 ; Lucas, Richard 9 ; Murray, Nicholas J 12 ; Sutherland, William J 1 ; Spalding, Mark 13 

 University of Cambridge, Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge, UK (GRID:grid.5335.0) (ISNI:0000000121885934) 
 University of Edinburgh, Global Change Group, School of Geosciences, Grant Institute, Kings Buildings, Edinburgh, UK (GRID:grid.4305.2) (ISNI:0000 0004 1936 7988) 
 National University of Singapore, Department of Geography, Singapore, Singapore (GRID:grid.4280.e) (ISNI:0000 0001 2180 6431) 
 U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Lafayette, USA (GRID:grid.4280.e) 
 University of Queensland, School of Biological Sciences, St. Lucia, Australia (GRID:grid.1003.2) (ISNI:0000 0000 9320 7537) 
 Independent GIS Consultant, Penzance, UK (GRID:grid.1003.2) 
 Spatial Support Systems, LLC, Cottonwood Heights, USA (GRID:grid.1003.2) 
 University of Wollongong, School of Earth Atmospheric and Life Sciences, Wollongong, Australia (GRID:grid.1007.6) (ISNI:0000 0004 0486 528X) 
 Aberystwyth University, Department of Geography and Earth Sciences, Aberystwyth, UK (GRID:grid.8186.7) (ISNI:0000000121682483) 
10  Macquarie University, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Sydney, Australia (GRID:grid.1004.5) (ISNI:0000 0001 2158 5405) 
11  East Carolina University, Department of Coastal Studies, Wanchese, USA (GRID:grid.255364.3) (ISNI:0000 0001 2191 0423); NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Biospheric Sciences Laboratory, Greenbelt, USA (GRID:grid.133275.1) (ISNI:0000 0004 0637 6666) 
12  James Cook University, College of Science and Engineering, Townsville, Australia (GRID:grid.1011.1) (ISNI:0000 0004 0474 1797) 
13  University of Cambridge, Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, Cambridge, UK (GRID:grid.5335.0) (ISNI:0000000121885934); University of Siena, The Nature Conservancy, c/o Department of Physical, Earth, and Environmental Sciences, Siena, Italy (GRID:grid.9024.f) (ISNI:0000 0004 1757 4641) 
Publication year
2020
Publication date
2020
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
e-ISSN
20452322
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
1888631191
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2020. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.