Mangrove Forest in Cambodia Home to Hundreds of Newly Discovered Wildlife Species

(Photo : Getty Images/Olivier Morin)

A recent biodiversity assessment in a mangrove forest revealed a stunning diversity of wildlife in these crucial but vulnerable areas.

The survey was conducted in Cambodia's Peam Krasop sanctuary and the adjacent Koh Kapik Ramsar reserve, and it detected hundreds of species ranging from bats and birds to fish and insects.

Wildlife In Cambodian Mangrove

The survey, funded by the conservation group Fauna & Flora International, identified species such as hairy-nosed otters, smooth-coated otters, large-spotted civets, long-tailed macaques, and fisher cats, as well as a diverse spectrum of bat species.

The diversity of wildlife has astounded researchers.

"We found 700 different species in these mangrove forests but we suspect we have not even scratched the surface," said Stefanie Rog, the leader of the survey team.

The fishing cat, Prionailurus viverrinus, is a prime example of the unusual species discovered in Cambodian mangrove forests. It is somewhat larger than a domestic breed, has robustly developed short limbs and a stocky body, and, unlike most other cats, enjoys swimming. Its front toes are somewhat webbed, and its claws protrude, allowing it to catch prey, primarily fish and rodents, which it stalks while hiding among mangrove roots.

Camera traps in some of the mangrove forest's older areas also captured images of an even rarer animal, the hairy-nosed otter. Lutra sumatrana uses hairs around its nose to identify its prey, which consists of crustaceans, molluscs, and other animals.

It is the rarest otter in Asia and is on the edge of extinction, which is a serious worry.

The survey, which was also supported by the Fishing Cat Ecological Enterprise, a conservation group, discovered 74 fish species in the forests' waters, as well as 150 bird species, 15 of which are listed as near-threatened or endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) red list.

Importance Of Mangrove

Mangrove forests form small, tangled strips of woody land along tropical and subtropical coasts. They are significant because they are composed of trees that have evolved to thrive in saline or brackish water, which most other plants cannot endure.

However, over the last few decades, the world has lost roughly 40% of its mangroves, which are frequently cut down to make space for beach resorts or agriculture.

Yet mangroves perform a vital function in protecting the land and its inhabitants. Their waterways serve as a nursery for commercially valuable fish, for example.

Mangroves also protect inland areas from tsunamis and storms, trap carbon far more efficiently than other types of woodland, and serve as habitats for a diverse range of animals, according to the new study, which made extensive use of camera traps, nets, fish and insect estimates, and "transect" surveys-studies conducted along a straight line drawn through the landscape.

According to scientists, mangroves play an important role in ecosystem preservation because they serve as two-way barriers between land and sea. They reduce soil erosion into the ocean while protecting coastal towns from flooding and storms.

"But it goes further than that. Mangrove forests are beautiful, rich, mysterious, and harvest so much life," Rog added.