Wetland function and values of xuan thuy mangrove forest

ContentsI.Introduction: state of wetland resources in VietnamII.Wetland Functions1.Fish and wildlife habitat food webs2.Wetland supermarket3.Recreation ResearchIII.Values of Xuan Thuy mangrove forest1.Economic values2.Values in terms of protection3.Ecological values4.Research values5.Other valuesIV.ConclusionsV.References

HANOI UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE, VNU FACULTY OF ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE

-o0o -WETLANDS - BIOLOGY AND REGULATION

Topic:

WETLAND FUNCTION AND VALUE OF XUAN THUY

MANGROVE FOREST

Instructor: Prof Nguyen Thi Loan

Group 6:

1. Hoang Tuan Anh

2. Pham Duc Tu

3. Le Danh Quan

4. Tran Thi Nhung

I. Introduction: state of wetland resources in Vietnam

II. Wetland Functions

1. Fish and wildlife habitat & food webs

2. Wetland supermarket

3. Recreation & Research

III. Values of Xuan Thuy mangrove forest

1. Economic values

2. Values in terms of protection

3. Ecological values

4. Research values

5. Other values

IV. Conclusions

V. References

WETLAND FUNCTION AND VALUE OF XUAN THUY

MANGROVE FOREST

Vietnam has total area about 33,000 km2 and length of coastal line about 3,260 km, about 3000 near shore island, more than 100 estuaries with 2 biggest estuaries are Red river delta and Mekong delta

Population is over 91 millions people (2012) Up to 28/64 provinces & over 30% population in the coastal zone

Vietnam has abundant and diverse in natural resources

Vietnam has total wetland area about 10 million hectares, accounting for 30% of total area of the country with various types of habitats (grassland, mangrove forest, estuary, freshwater reservoir, etc) Vietnam has high biodiversity with many endemic, endangered species.There are 68 wetland areas with national and international importance (VEPA , 2001), including 2 Ramsar site (Xuan Thuy, Bau Sau)

Million Vietnamese people are relying on these resources Play an important role in Vietnamese people’s culture and ritual for thousands of years

Figure 1: Sea grass – C.rotundatata (Phu Quy island)

Figure 2: Mangrove – Hon Gom Peninsular

Figure 3: Peatswamp – U Minh Thuong National Park

II. WETLAND FUNCTIONS

1. Fish and wildlife habitat & food webs

The park has a rich, biodiverse coastal wetland environment that is home to about 110 aquatic plant species, 500 species of benthos and zooplankton Many aquatic species

of high economic value, like shrimps, fish, crabs and oysters, are also found in the area Fish, shrimps and crabs provide the main income of the local community

Though wetlands are most often associated with waterfowl, they provide essential habitat for a wide variety of species – birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and insects – up to 45% of which are rare and endangered Some species, such as the wood duck and muskrat, spend most of their life within wetlands, while others – striped bass, peregrine falcon and deer – occasionally visit wetlands for food, water, or shelter Those species that require wetland habitat to complete at least a portion of their life cycle are called obligate species

2. Wetland supermarket

Wetlands can be thought of as “biological supermarkets.” They produce great quantities of food that attract many animal species The complex, dynamic feeding

relationships among the organisms inhabiting wetland environments are referred to as food webs The combination of shallow water, high levels of inorganic nutrients, and high rates of primary productivity (the synthesis of new plant biomass through

photosynthesis) in many wetlands is ideal for the development of organisms that form the base of the food web

Wetlands are also valuable for the variety of commercial products harvested from them:

Food

 Wild rice, cranberries, blueberries, mint

 Salmon, alewife and other major commercial fish species

 Shrimp, blue crab

Other products

 Marsh grasses for baskets and chair caning

 Peat and sphagnum moss for landscaping

 Reeds for bedding and thatch

 Timber such as northern white cedar, tupelo, and bald cypress

 Beaver, muskrat, nutria, mink, and otter furs

3. Recreation & Research

Xuân Thủy National Park is a tourist attraction for people who enjoy the peace and love to explore nature As a staging and wintering site on the East Asian-Australian flyway, the best time to visit Xuan Thuy is September to April In August and September, it is still possible to see non-breeding Painted Stork, as well as early migrants, such as Black-winged Stilt Later, from October onwards, it relatively easy

to find wintering Black-faced Spoonbills, particularly at their roost sites in the shrimp ponds

In Xuan Thuy National Park, you can ask for the assistance from park staff, who know the site very well and are able to show us where to watch particular bird species It will

be so good if you can get a guide from the park Basically, you can take the hiking routes or boating routes to the sites of interest It means that you can travel by foot to some places of interest; or you can only be reached by boat at high tide

Hiking Routes: Walking through the natural and artificial habitats along the dike system in Con Ngan Island, where the park headquarters is located Especially, in the high tide time, you can find numerous bird roosting in the shrimp ponds, including Black-faced Spoonbill, gulls, ducks and waders

Boating Routes: In the high tide time, you can get boat to reach the offshore mudflats and sandy flats, where Spoon-billed Sandpiper can be found among large flocks of waders An alternative boat route involves visiting Con Xanh island, which supports some Casuarina forest, where is very suitable for the migrating non-waterbirds In the island, you can find the pittas and other passerines during migrating season Another way, you can take boat to the off shore mudflats and sandy flats areas of Giao Xuan Commune, where is the best area for watching the shorebirds In this site, you can find big flocks of waders and especially Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Nordmann's Greenshank, many species of gulls including Saunders's Gull, duck species and sometime Black-faced Spoonbill and Black-headed Ibis

The diversity and natural beauty of wetlands provide a living, hands-on classroom for education and scientific research, as this guidebook demonstrates

Figure 4: Wetland ecosystem Wetlands support a rich food web, from Microscopic algae and submerged vascular plants to great blue herons and otters

III. VALUES OF XUAN THUY MANGROVES FOREST

1. Economic values

In 2007, fisheries came up for 36.1% of a family’s income, there were 1,800 hectare of aquaculture ponds in the Buffer Zone With the annual growth rate of the marine business being 14.9%, this sector is in fast expansion and is seen to have a higher economic turnover than traditional agriculture On the other side, clam-rearing for example can have a high financial return, but also needs big investments and puts a high pressure on the environment Ngoài ra cho thêm ở trong slide vào

2. Values in term of protection

Giao Thuy is a landlocked district so suffered from the South China Sea storms the dyke protection is very important Some studies show that since the mangrove forest area first developed, dikes are stable, and virtually unaffected by waves and tides

Figure 5: Mangrove forest

3. Ecological values

Xuan Thuy mangrove is a staging and wintering area for shorebirds, gulls and waterfowl in the coastal zone of the Red River Delta The mangrove is a living space for 250 species of birds (150 migratory and 50 water bird species) from 41 families and 13 orders 9 species are designated as endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species for example the Spoon-billed Sandpiperand Nordmann's Greenshank 65- 75 Black-faced Spoonbill – who were chosen to be the symbol of Xuan Thuy Mangrove - are seen in the migratory season The total number of Black-faced Spoonbill in the world are about 1000, it shows that 5% of the whole population

of the species are living in Xuan Thuy Mangrove during the winter season The mangrove also provides a habitat for other rare animal species These includes species

of otter, porpoise Furthermore it has 30 species of reptiles and an uncounted number

of different insects

Xuan Thuy Mangroves are 120 species of vascular plants (20 of which thrive particularly well in the wetland habitat) The mangrove forest helps stabilizing the alluvial soil as well as functioning as flood protection and playing an important role in different biochemical cycles 111 aquatic plant species have been recorded Certain species of seaweed in particular are of high economic value Over 500 species of benthos and zooplankton (shrimp, fish, crab, oysters etc.) have also been identified

Figure 6: Black-faced Spoonbill

4. Research values

Since it is a very important natural site in Southeast Asia, Xuan Thuy Mangrove has been subject to many both Vietnamese and international scientific researches There have been written more than 10 PhD theses, tens of master and hundreds of research papers by students from over 30 Vietnamese universities Non-governmental organizations also conducted research before implementing new projects which usually are related to the conservation of environment or to sustainable development

In terms of preservation matter, Xuan Thuy Mangrove has the following objectives and tasks:

To preserve the typical submerged land ecological system of the Red river-mouth region, the specific fauna and flora species of the submerged land ecological system, especially aquatic species, water birds and migration birds

To build material and technical bases in service of training, scientific research, environmental education and eco-tourist development, thus contributing to socio-economic development and creating jobs for local population communities

To serve scientific research, environmental education and eco-tourist development

To maintain Xuan Thuy Mangrove as a Ramsar site through conservation of biodiversity and responsible fisheries

To raise public awareness and also recognized local community efforts in the conservation of Xuan Thuy Mangrove, the sustainable and wise-use of the park's resources, and responsible fisheries and management

5. The others values

The tourism

As a staging and wintering site on the East Asian-Australian flyway, the best time to visit Xuan Thuy is September to April In August and September, it is still possible to see non-breeding Painted Stork, as well as early migrants, such as Black-winged Stilt Later, from October onwards, it relatively easy to find wintering Black-faced Spoonbills, particularly at their roost sites in the shrimp ponds

In Xuan Thuy Mangrove, you can ask for the assistance from park staff, who know the site very well and are able to show us where to watch particular bird species It will be

so good if you can get a guide from the park Basically, you can take the hiking routes

or boating routes to the sites of interest It means that you can travel by foot to some places of interest; or you can only be reached by boat at high tide Hiking Routes: Walking through the natural and artificial habitats along the dike system in Con Ngan Island, where the park headquarters is located Especially, in the high tide time, you can find numerous birds roosting in the shrimp ponds, including Black-faced Spoonbill, gulls, ducks and waders

Boating Routes: In the high tide time, you can get boat to reach the offshore mudflats and sandy flats, where Spoon-billed Sandpiper can be found among large flocks of waders An alternative boat route involves visiting Con Xanh island, which supports some Casuarina forest, where is very suitable for the migrating non-waterbirds In the island, you can find the pittas and other passerines during migrating season Another way, you can take boat to the off shore mudflats and sandy flats areas of Giao Xuan Commune, where is the best area for watching the shorebirds In this site, you can find big flocks of waders and especially Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Nordmann's Greenshank, many species of gulls including Saunders's Gull, duck species and sometime Black-faced Spoonbill and Black-headed Ibis Xuan Thuy Mangrove is the pride for local people in their wetlands area, its relevance as a Ramsar site, its importance for their eco-tourist development

Figure 7: Tourism in Xuan Thuy National Park

The Community based ecotourism model is feasible in term of natural resource conservation in Xuan Thuy National Park, Vietnam

considerably enhanced

Ecotourism model is creative way in order to reach sustainable development

3. The Regional Training Course on Sustainable Use and Management of Coastal Wetlands, 5-20 November 2007, Mahidol University, Thailand.