Turks and Caicos Islands

Status of wetlands
Over half of the land area of TCI consists of wetlands comprising tidal flats, salt marsh and mangrove
communities. The wetlands are recognized as internationally important areas as they mostly remain in their
natural condition. Wetland habitats can be saline, brackish or fresh and can be recharged tidally
(estuarine), by rainfall and groundwater recharge (palustrine). A third wetland formation, lacustrine,
represents permanent standing ponds fed by groundwater and karst formations. The North, Middle and
East Caicos Nature Reserve (Ramsar site) is a wetland of international importance, containing a variety of
habitat types representative of the region.
Estuarine
Estuarine habitats represent the vast majority of terrestrial (and wetland) formations within the Turks and
Caicos Islands. Tidal mangrove forests are located throughout the Turks and Caicos Islands along shorelines
and within estuaries subjected to daily tidal fluctuations. Caicos has a very large mangrove area, especially
in the southern portion of North Caicos and in Middle and East Caicos, where they form a virtually
continuous stand (FAO, 2007). Four mangrove species grow along the coastal areas of TCI: Rhizophora
mangle (Red mangrove), Avicennia germinans (Black mangrove), Laguncularia racemosa (White mangrove)
and Conocarpus erectus (Buttonwood mangrove). True mangrove forests comprise a relatively small
percentage of the islands but nevertheless serve a vital function. Estuarine formations provide a wide
variety of ecosystem services including critical habitats for a wide variety of shoreline birds that forage for
insects, crustaceans and invertebrates trapped in the flooded low-lying vegetation. Other ecosystems such
as coral reefs and seagrass beds benefit from the mangrove’s ability to filter sediments and pollution that
would otherwise cloud the water and contribute to algal blooms. There is also an important link between
these three habitats through chemical, biological exchanges and migratory activities.
Mangroves also provide a myriad of benefits to humans by protecting the environment. Their roots
contribute to soil stability by encouraging sedimentation and reducing erosion. These biomes are significant
to the subsistence, commercial and sports fisheries as they provide nurseries and habitat for juvenile
finfish. Mangrove forests act as a natural coastal defence against the high energy waves and strong winds
that batter coastlines during extreme events. A comparison of two villages in Sri Lanka that were struck by
the 2004 tsunami reveals the role of healthy mangrove forests in saving lives. In the village of Kapuhenwala,
which is surrounded by 200 ha of mangrove forest, only two people died as a result of the tsunami as
compared to the death toll of 6,000 in the village of Wanduruppa where the mangroves are severely
degraded (IUCN, 2005). Kayak tours through the mangroves of Bottle Creek, Frenchmans Creek Nature
Reserve and Mangrove Cay provide economic benefit and employment for persons in the tourism sector.
Palustrine habitats frequently form the ecotone (a transition area of vegetation between two different
plant communities) between estuarine and upland habitats of TCI. Together with lacustrine habitats they
also provide critical habitat for waterfowl species and saline herbaceous communities. These wetlands are
the primary habitat for the islands’ national flower; the critically endangered endemic species Limonium
bahamense, a succulent also known as ‘island heather’ that thrives in the saline conditions of salt flats.
Small sinkholes are the habitat to another TCI endemic- a crustacean, Typhlatya spp. (note: identification is
uncertain).
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