Our Many Mangroves - Letter from Our President

Red mangrove prop roots (Photo by Lisa D. Mickey)

Visitors often go straight to the beach when they come to Canaveral National Seashore. It is, indeed, a beautiful, natural shoreline overlooked by dunes, sea oats and decorated by a smattering of vegetation, such as wandering railroad vine, dune sunflower and sea purslane.

But head west only a short distance away by foot and you will encounter a superstar of the lagoon: mangrove trees. In fact, there are three species of mangrove trees that line the shorelines of the adjacent estuary, the Indian River Lagoon. 

The red mangrove typically grows closest to the water and is the most recognizable by its downward-extended, red-colored prop roots. The black mangrove has vertical-standing, pencil-shaped roots that protrude from the water, while the white mangrove tree tends to be the most upland (away from the water) of the three species and has a round leaf and light-colored branches.

All three of these mangrove trees produce propagules, which grow on the trees throughout the year and drop off each autumn. The red mangrove propagule looks similar to a long green bean, while the black mangrove propagule looks like a fat lima bean and the white mangrove propagule is about the same size and shape as an almond. These embryos from the mangrove tree fall into the lagoon, sprout roots and can become new trees, wherever they land.

Mangrove trees also flower and local beekeepers strategically place their hives in places near these trees during the early summer months to produce this region’s truly local mangrove honey. But while the bees buzz around the flowers, there is a lot more action going on with these trees than you might imagine.

If you were to sit quietly and observe mangrove-tree activity, you might see songbirds (such as red-winged blackbirds) in the tree tops and yellow-crowned night herons and various other wading birds looking for fish and crabs around the roots.

You might also see oyster colonies that have formed on the mangrove root systems, as well as mangrove crabs running up and down the roots and branches. There also could be a variety of small fish, crabs, conchs, whelks, shrimp and even juvenile sharks darting around the roots.

And underneath the water, in the highly organic detritus that has formed through rotting leaves, twigs and animal matter, is a whole different world that serves as the base of the estuarine food network.

Mangroves provide a tremendous habitat for so many species, while stabilizing our shorelines. As we enter the thick of Florida hurricane season, these trees help prevent erosion, flooding and give birds and animals shelter during tropical storms, as well as during the sweltering summer heat. An estimated 75-80 percent of marine species begin their lives around these mangrove forests that surround the lagoon.

And, as if all of these attributes were not enough, global scientific estimates credit mangrove trees for storing up to four times more carbon than even Amazonian tropical rain forests!

So, the next time you visit Canaveral National Seashore, wander over to the lagoon side of the park and pay some respect to our mangrove forest. They are working hard to provide ecological benefits for us all on so many levels.

Lisa D. Mickey

President, Friends of Canaveral

Lisa D. Mickey is a Florida Master Naturalist / Florida Land Steward