SEYCHELLES' ALDABRA ATOLL MANGROVES GO AGAINST THE GLOBAL TREND

According to the Seychelles Island Foundation (SIF), mangrove coverage on the Aldabra Atoll has increased by around 60 hectares since 1997.

This figure was deduced from a study which comprised satellite imagery captured over the atoll between 1997 and 2018.

What stands out is that on a global scale, generally mangrove habitats are in decline. However, not for Aldabra, where the aforementioned study reveals that the protected mangrove forest has expanded over the past 20 years or so.



Frauke Fleischer-Dogley, SIF's Chief Executive has expressed, "This remarkable increase shows the potential of our protected areas in Seychelles to raise finance as blue carbon capital that will not only fund our work to manage our protected areas but also assist the local community to develop sustainable business models based on our intact environment."

The Aldabra Atoll, one of the Seychelles' World Heritage sites, is home to the largest area of mangroves throughout the archipelago and has been strictly protected since 1976. In fact, mangrove habitat covers more than 11% of Aldabra's total land area.

The study's results demonstrate the importance of the protection of this valued habitat and underscores the ecological importance of Aldabra on a regional level.

To note, the study was conducted by researchers from the University of Zurich and the SIF, which manages the Aldabra Atoll.

Lead author and University of Zurich and SIF researcher, Annabelle Constance commented, "While we know a lot about the importance of mangroves, we still need to better understand the factors that influence their extent, which in simple terms means where mangrove forests have grown, died or remained stable over time. In that regard, our study is helping to better protect these valuable forests by highlighting what impacts their extent."

Researchers also found an effect of the wave power on mangrove extent stability. Lower wave power values were recorded for stable mangrove areas than for areas that had gained or lost mangroves from 1997 to 2018.

The results confirm that local mangrove extent is vulnerable to threats of sea level rise that will likely exacerbate the impact of waves on atolls by allowing larger, more powerful waves to reach the coastline.


Despite being protected, Aldabra's mangroves are vulnerable to climate change impacts reported within the Indian Ocean. Sea level rise impacts mangroves through erosion, decreasing the oxygen available for the plants to breathe and promoting toxic soil growing conditions for the plant.