The Manabí mangroves (NT1418) is an ecoregion along the Pacific coast of Ecuador. The
mangrove
A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evoluti ...
s serve important functions in the marine and terrestrial ecology.
They have been severely degraded and fragmented, particularly in the northern region. Construction of shrimp farms caused much damage in the past, but is now banned.
Sedimentation caused by
overgrazing
Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature res ...
in higher lands is an issue, as are human activities such as port and highway construction, urbanization, waste disposal and so on.
Geography
Location
The mangroves are found along the coast of Ecuador and cover an area of .
There are two sub-regions.
The Cojimíes sub-region in
Esmeraldas Province
Esmeraldas () is a province in northwestern Ecuador. The capital is Esmeraldas.
The province is home to the Afro-Ecuadorian culture.
Demographics
Ethnic groups as of the Ecuadorian census of 2010:
*Mestizo 44.7%
* Afro-Ecuadorian 43.9%
*W ...
lies between the
Muisne River to the north and the town of
Pedernales to the south.
It transitions into the
Western Ecuador moist forests
The Western Ecuador Moist Forests (NT0178), also known as thPacific Forest of Ecuador is an ecoregion in the plains and western foothills of the Andes of southern Colombia and Ecuador.
At one time this region contained dense forests with highly div ...
ecoregion to the east.
It contains a section around
Muisne
Muisne is a coastal town in the southwest of the province of Esmeraldas in northwestern Ecuador, with 5,925 inhabitants in the last Ecuadorian census in 2010. It is the seat of the namesake canton.
The town is located on the northern tip of the ...
that fringes the
Ensenada de Mompiche, and further south a larger section of mangroves around the estuary of the
Mache River
The Mache River is a river that enters the Pacific Ocean through the Cojimies Estuary on the north coast of Ecuador.
Location
The sources of the river are protected by the Mache-Chindul Ecological Reserve, which covers the Mache Chindul mountain ...
on the border between Esmeraldas and
Manabí provinces.
Further south, the Chone sub-region in
Manabí Province
Manabí () is a province in Ecuador. Its capital is Portoviejo. The province is named after the Manabí people.
Demographics
Ethnic groups as of the Ecuadorian census of 2010:
*Mestizo 66.7%
* Montubio 19.2%
* Afro-Ecuadorian 6.0%
*White 7 ...
lies between the town of
Bahía de Caráquez
Bahía de Caráquez, officially known as San Antonio de Caraquez and founded under the name of Villa de San Antonio de la Bahía de Caráquez or simply known today as Bahía, formerly called Bahía de los Caras during the period of the Spanish co ...
and the
Chone River
The Chone River is a river of Ecuador situated in the Manabí Province., GEOnet Names Server, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency The river is sourced from the mountains and flows into the Bahía de Caráquez (Bay of Caráquez) ...
to the north and the
Portoviejo River
The Portoviejo River is a river of the southern coast of Ecuador.
See also
*List of rivers of Ecuador
The rivers of Ecuador are an important part of the nation's geography and economy. Most of the over 2,000 rivers and streamsTerry have headwate ...
to the south.
The mangroves transition into the
Ecuadorian dry forests
The Ecuadorian dry forests (NT0214) is an ecoregion near the Pacific coast of the Ecuador.
The habitat has been occupied by people for centuries and has been severely damaged by deforestation, overgrazing and hillside erosion due to unsustainable ...
ecoregion to the east.
The sub-region includes a section of mangroves around the estuary of the
Chone River
The Chone River is a river of Ecuador situated in the Manabí Province., GEOnet Names Server, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency The river is sourced from the mountains and flows into the Bahía de Caráquez (Bay of Caráquez) ...
, and further south a section that extends inland from the coast to the south of
San Clemente
San Clemente (; Spanish for " St. Clement") is a city in Orange County, California. Located in the Orange Coast region of the South Coast of California, San Clemente's population was 64,293 in at the 2020 census. Situated roughly midway betwee ...
along the floodplain of the
Portoviejo River
The Portoviejo River is a river of the southern coast of Ecuador.
See also
*List of rivers of Ecuador
The rivers of Ecuador are an important part of the nation's geography and economy. Most of the over 2,000 rivers and streamsTerry have headwate ...
.
Terrain
Tide levels fluctuate widely.
The soil is swampy and unstable, with complex woody structures.
Landscapes include deltas, estuaries, lakes and carbonated platforms.
Some areas have high sedimentation and therefore a low shoreline, low wave energy and less estuaries.
The main rivers in the Cojimíes sub-region are the Muisne River, delivering , and the
Cojimíes River.
The main river in the Chone sub-region is the Chone River, delivering .
Climate
Rainfall averages per year in the Cojimíes sub-region, and per year in the Chone subregion.
The region is strongly influenced by the cold, dry
Humboldt Current
The Humboldt Current, also called the Peru Current, is a cold, low- salinity ocean current that flows north along the western coast of South America.Montecino, Vivian, and Carina B. Lange. "The Humboldt Current System: Ecosystem components and pr ...
from the south meeting the warm
El Niño
El Niño (; ; ) is the warm phase of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and is associated with a band of warm ocean water that develops in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific (approximately between the International Date L ...
currents in the
Intertropical Convergence Zone
The Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ ), known by sailors as the doldrums or the calms because of its monotonous windless weather, is the area where the northeast and the southeast trade winds converge. It encircles Earth near the thermal e ...
.
The result is a climate where temperatures fluctuate considerably and occasionally fall below freezing.
Ecology
The ecoregion is in the
neotropical
The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone.
Definition
In bioge ...
realm, in the
mangrove
A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evoluti ...
s biome.
It is part of the
Panama Bight Mangroves, a Global ecoregion, that consists of the
Gulf of Panama mangroves,
Esmeraldas–Pacific Colombia mangroves, Manabí mangroves and
Gulf of Guayaquil–Tumbes mangroves.
The complex mangrove forests protect the coast from sea swells and winds, clear salt from the sea breezes and are home to a rich variety of marine and freshwater fauna.
The
El Niño
El Niño (; ; ) is the warm phase of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and is associated with a band of warm ocean water that develops in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific (approximately between the International Date L ...
periodically disrupts the environment.
Flora
The mangroves grow in border, strip and coastal formations.
There are relatively few species of flora.
In the wetter zones where there is low sedimentation the main species are black mangrove (''
Avicennia germinans
''Avicennia germinans'', the black mangrove, is a shrub or small tree growing up to 12 meters (39 feet) in the acanthus family, Acanthaceae. It grows in tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, on both the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts, ...
''), red mangrove (''
Rhizophora mangle
''Rhizophora mangle'', the red mangrove, is distributed in Estuary, estuarine ecosystems throughout the tropics. Its Vivipary, viviparous "seeds", in actuality called propagules, become fully mature plants before dropping off the parent tree. Th ...
'') and mangle caballero (''
Rhizophora harrisonii
''Rhizophora harrisonni'' is a species of plant in the family Rhizophoraceae. It can be found in Brazil, Cameroon, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guyana, French Guiana, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Suriname, Trinidad, Tobago, and Venezuela.
De ...
).
Further inland other species include the button mangrove (''
Conocarpus erectus
''Conocarpus erectus'', commonly called buttonwood or button mangrove, is a mangrove shrub in the family Combretaceae. This species grows on shorelines in tropical and subtropical regions around the world.
Range
Locations it is known from inc ...
''), white mangrove (''
Laguncularia racemosa
''Laguncularia racemosa'', the white mangrove, is a species of flowering plant in the leadwood tree family, Combretaceae. It is native to the coasts of western Africa from Senegal to Cameroon, the Atlantic Coast of the Americas from Bermuda an ...
'') and tea mangrove (''
Pelliciera rhizophorae
''Pelliciera rhizophorae'', known as the tea mangrove, is a less-common species of mangroves found along the Pacific coast from the Gulf of Nicoya in Costa Rica to the Esmeraldas River in Ecuador, as well as within stands located in Nicaragua, P ...
'').
The mangroves also host
red algae
Red algae, or Rhodophyta (, ; ), are one of the oldest groups of eukaryotic algae. The Rhodophyta also comprises one of the largest phyla of algae, containing over 7,000 currently recognized species with taxonomic revisions ongoing. The majority ...
and
epiphyte
An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...
s such as
Orchidaceae
Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant.
Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...
s,
Bromeliaceae
The Bromeliaceae (the bromeliads) are a family of monocot
Monocotyledons (), commonly referred to as monocots, (Lilianae ''sensu'' Chase & Reveal) are grass and grass-like flowering plants (angiosperms), the seeds of which typically contain o ...
,
Cactus
A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...
and
moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...
es.
The tea mangrove (''Pelliciera rhizophorae'') is endemic to the Chone sub-region.
Fauna
The mangroves do not have high levels of endemism, but in any given area have many different species.
They are habitats for mammals, birds, reptiles, mollusks, crustaceans and fish.
The mangrove detritus is converted to protein by microscopic organisms, by worms such as
nematode
The nematodes ( or grc-gre, Νηματώδη; la, Nematoda) or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda (also called Nemathelminthes), with plant-Parasitism, parasitic nematodes also known as eelworms. They are a diverse animal phylum inhab ...
s,
polychaete
Polychaeta () is a paraphyletic class (biology), class of generally marine invertebrate, marine annelid worms, common name, commonly called bristle worms or polychaetes (). Each body segment has a pair of fleshy protrusions called parapodia that ...
s and
oligochaeta
Oligochaeta () is a subclass of animals in the phylum Annelida, which is made up of many types of aquatic and terrestrial worms, including all of the various earthworms. Specifically, oligochaetes comprise the terrestrial megadrile earthworm ...
, and by
amphipoda
Amphipoda is an order of malacostracan crustaceans with no carapace and generally with laterally compressed bodies. Amphipods range in size from and are mostly detritivores or scavengers. There are more than 9,900 amphipod species so far desc ...
,
bivalvia
Bivalvia (), in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs
Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of w ...
and
gastropoda
The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda ().
This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. ...
.
Fish and shrimp migrate through the mangroves during their reproductive cycles.
Fish that feed on organic detritus in turn provide food to larger land and water carnivores.
There are many fish of the genus ''
Mugil
''Mugil'' is a genus of mullet in the family Mugilidae found worldwide in tropical and temperate coastal marine waters, but also entering estuaries and rivers.
Species
There are currently 16 recognized species in this genus:
* '' Mugil bananens ...
'' and many crustaceans of the family
Penaeidae
Penaeidae is a family of marine crustaceans in the suborder Dendrobranchiata, which are often referred to as penaeid shrimp or penaeid prawns. The Penaeidae contain many species of economic importance, such as the tiger prawn, whiteleg shrimp, ...
.
Mammals and birds move between the mangroves and the terra firme, and from one patch of mangroves to another along the coast.
Mammals include
crab-eating raccoon (''Procyon cancrivorus''),
jaguar
The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus '' Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the th ...
(''Panthera onca''),
mantled howler
The mantled howler (''Alouatta palliata'') is a species of howler monkey, a type of New World monkey, from Central and South America. It is one of the monkey species most often seen and heard in the wild in Central America. It takes its "mantled" ...
(''Alouatta palliata'') and
white-headed capuchin
White-faced capuchin, or white headed capuchin, can refer to either of two species of gracile capuchin monkey:
* ''Cebus imitator'', the Panamanian white-faced capuchin, also known as the Panamanian white-headed capuchin or Central American w ...
(''Cebus capucinus'').
Reptiles include the
green iguana (''Iguana iguana'').
There are 42 birds species including ''
Columbina
Columbina (in Italian Colombina, meaning "little dove"; in French and English Colombine) is a stock character in the ''commedia dell'arte''. She is Harlequin's mistress, a comic servant playing the tricky slave type, and wife of Pierrot. Rudli ...
'' dove species,
brown pelican
The brown pelican (''Pelecanus occidentalis'') is a bird of the pelican family, Pelecanidae, one of three species found in the Americas and one of two that feed by diving into water. It is found on the Atlantic Coast from New Jersey to the mout ...
(''Pelecanus occidentalis'') and
magnificent frigatebird
The magnificent frigatebird (''Fregata magnificens'') is a seabird of the frigatebird family Fregatidae. With a length of and wingspan of it is the largest species of frigatebird. It occurs over tropical and subtropical waters off America, betw ...
(''Fregata magnificens'').
The
mangrove finch (''Camarhynchus heliobates'') is seriously endangered.
Status
The
World Wide Fund for Nature
The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wor ...
gives the ecoregion the status "Critical/Endangered".
38% of the two mangrove sub-regions is in critical condition and suffers from high levels of fragmentation.
The government enacted a ban on building shrimp farms in or near mangroves in 1985.
However, development of shrimp farms and conversion of land to pasturage in adjacent areas has affected the mangroves in the Cojimíes sub-region.
Sedimentation in the rivers due to over-grazing on higher lands is an issue in the Chone sub-region.
Other impacts come from urbanization, highway and port construction, drainage works and waste.
The mangroves of the Cojimíes sub-region are seriously fragmented.
As of 1999 an area of of the original mangroves had been lost, while shrimp farms now covered .
However, in the Chone subregion the mangroves had expanded by and the shrimp farms had been reduced in size by .
This may be caused in part by the increase of sedimentation associated with the shrimp farms, creating more shallow water to be colonized by mangroves.
Although the National System of Protected Areas in 1989 declared the Manabí mangroves a priority, they are not covered by any protected area.
Some NGOs are working on research and improved environmental management.
The
Congal Biomarine Station is a reserve operated by a private non-profit organization beside the
Muisne River estuary that protects the mangrove wetlands.
The mangroves had been heavily affected by aquaculture and over-extraction of natural resources.
Many people depended on shrimp farms, and lost their livings when an exotic viral disease destroyed the shrimps.
The station attempts to develop community-based sustainable use of the reserve's resource.
Notes
Sources
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:
Neotropical ecoregions
Ecoregions of Ecuador
Mangrove ecoregions
Tropical Eastern Pacific