Flora of the mangrove

Mangroves exist in the transient world of land and sea having to endure the relentless rhythm of the tides. Life at land’s end is harsh, yet many have triumphed over the adverse environment with each inhabitant playing a role in making the ecosystem a viable and dynamic one.

	Seedlings fall on unstable mud and soon, there is a forest of mangroves. A walk along the boardwalk leads you through this "sea of trees" and into a whole new world. The ability of mangroves to grow in anaerobic, high salinity, waterlogged mud of the intertidal realm is something to be revered.
	The Rhizophora sp. has roots that branch from trunks like stilts. This helps to prop up the tree in the soft mud so that it will not topple with the ebbing and rising tide.
	Mangrove flowers are intricately designed and some are colourful. Pollinators of these flowers include birds, moths, bats and wind.
	Some seeds germinate on the parent plant before they detach and fall to the mudflats to begin life on their own. Through this adaptation, the seedlings are able to take root immediately in favourable conditions, thus increasing their chances of survival.
	The Xylocarpus granatum is a tree that could reach to a height of 15 meters tall. The tree has a peeling, smooth bark, have white flowers and large pendulous woody fruit. Once ripe, the fruit will burst open to reveal several pyramid-shaped seeds, which are dispersed by water. The hardy wood is use for boat-building & furniture; bark for tanning and medicinally against dysentery, and roots and seeds in medicinal preparations.
	The Avicennia alba is the most common Avicennia species found in the reserve. All Avicennia species have the ability to excrete excess salt from their leaves through special salt glands found in the leaf surface. The term alba and the common name in Malay Api Api Puteh refers to whitish under leaf surface.
	The pencil-like roots of the Avicennia sp or pneumatophores branched upwards from the main horizontal roots that grow below the soil. These roots allow the absorption of atmospheric oxygen through specialized root cells known as lenticels. This adaptation is important, as the mud that the mangrove trees grow is extremely low in oxygen.
	The Nypa fruticans or Nipah as it is commonly known, have pollen fossils found in deposits dating back to 70 million years ago! Leaflets are used to make roof thatching (ataps), house partitions, hats, umbrellas, baskets and mats. The young leaflets are dried and used as cigarette wrappers and leaf stalks are burn as fuel. Sugar, wine (toddy) and vinegar can be obtained by processing the sweet sap tapped from severed flowering stalks. Atap- chee, a sweetmeat, is made from young seeds, and served in a local desert call ice-kacang.
	Hibiscus tiliaceus is commonly known as Sea Hibiscus and can grow up to 13 meters tall. It have heart-shaped leaf. The bright yellow flower with maroon eye opens in the morning and fades dull pink soon after falling in the same evening. The seeds are enclosed within a star-shaped calyx cup. The tree has many uses and that includes stem cuttings as fences, wood for boat building and firewood, fibers from the bark as strings and roots, leaves and shoots are medicinal.