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Ecosystem Carbon Stock of Selected Mangrove Forests of Vypin – Cochin Region, Southwest Coast of India

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Abstract

In a tropical coastal environment, mangrove ecosystems store large amount of atmospheric carbon in biomass and soil. West coast of India host 29% of the mangrove ecosystems of the country. Putting aside the few scientific studies about the Indian mangroves system, there exist gaps in our scientific knowledge of Blue Carbon domain. This study aims to quantify the ecosystem carbon stocks potential and community structure of mangrove vegetation/ ecosystem species of Vypin– Cochin, a coastal region of the Southwest coast of India. The information on species-specific carbon storage will benefit to choose best species in the afforestation and conservation initiatives. Distribution, community structure and carbon pools of above and below ground biomass of the study area were assessed. From the analysis, it is evident that the amount of carbon stored in mangroves varies according to species, functional attributes (basal area, DBH, mean height etc.) and region. Avicennia officinalis, Rhizophora mucronata, Acanthus ilicifolius, Acrostichum aureum, Bruguiera cylindrica and Sonneratia caseolaris are the mangrove species observed from the study area. As per the community structure assessment, A. officinalis showed large number, frequency, density, and evenness. While considering biomass, R.mucronata species possess high value. The mean overall above ground biomass of the region was 69.55 ± 80.38 t ha−1. Ecosystem carbon stock of the area ranges from 17.7–138.8 with an average of 54.3 ± 36 t ha−1. Therefore, the findings described will serve as a baseline on carbon stock and mangrove stand structure of the region and their role in Blue Carbon dynamics of the Southwest Coast of India.

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Acknowledgements

The first author gratefully acknowledges the support from the Director, Institute for Climate Change Studies (ICCS), Kerala. The authors are thankful to Dr. George Chackacherry (former Director, ICCS), and Dr. E V Ramasamy, Director, School of Environmental Sciences (SES), Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala. The authors express their gratitude to the Director,National Centre for Earth Science Studies, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India and for the encouragement. Authors would like to thank Dr. Joby Paul, Assistant Professor, Department of Botany, St. Thomas’ College, Thrissur, Kerala. The authors are grateful to the editors and anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments and suggestions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Climate Change Studies, Kottayam, Kerala, India

    M. S. ShyleshChandran, Arun Ravi, Sheffy Molly John, Silpa Sivan, M. S. Asha & Pratheesh C. Mammen

  2. ESSO – National Centre for Earth Science Studies (Ministry of Earth Sciences), Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695011, India

    M. S. ShyleshChandran

  3. Kerala State Disaster Management Authority, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India

    Pratheesh C. Mammen

  4. School of Environmental Sciences, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala, India

    K. J. Sajith Kumar & S. N. Sruthi

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ShyleshChandran, M.S., Ravi, A., John, S.M. et al. Ecosystem Carbon Stock of Selected Mangrove Forests of Vypin – Cochin Region, Southwest Coast of India. Wetlands 40, 2263–2273 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-020-01365-7

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