Mangrove Cove

Active management of mangrove expansion
Active management of mangrove expansion does not address the causal issues of
mangrove incursion across saltmarsh areas (Harty, 2002). Additionally, trying to
remove or prevent mangroves from growing is impractical over large areas. That said,
in very small areas where there are biodiversity and cultural benefits from maintaining
the widest range of habitats, the active management of mangrove expansion may be
possible.
The most usual method of controlling mangroves in Australia is the physical removal
of mangroves from saltmarsh and mud flat habitats. This method requires annual
repetition and does nothing to prevent the future year’s crops from establishing on the
site. The numbers of plants to be removed may be quite large (numbering in the
hundreds), requiring considerable volunteer or other effort. This effort may be less
than forthcoming, considering that volunteers may have, with all best intentions,
assisted the mangroves to establish in certain areas. The Ethelton mangroves are still
protected by legislation, and still listed of the National Trust’s register of significant
trees.
Figure 1 - Numbers of small mangroves across the mud flat and in the saltmarsh
Mangroves, once their pneumatophores have established, do not take kindly to being
transplanted, so many of the plants removed will simply die if planted to other parts of
the site. This is especially so for the larger plants that have established around the
wrecks, many of which exceed 2m height.