Community mapping and vegetational analysis of the mangrove forest in Calabanga, San Miguel Bay, Philippines

Abstract

Mangrove forests in Philippines have been noted for years to be continuously dwindling in terms of forest cover and diversity. The reasons behind these unfortunate events are the unabated illegal activities in the mangroves albeit the enforcement of laws and policies pertaining to its conservation and rehabilitation. For several decades, the Philippine government had been implementing programs and projects aiming to bring back the once pristine and productive mangrove areas through reforestation of denuded areas in the country. However, assessment is needed to evaluate whether these efforts have positively impacted coastal areas. This paper presents the current vegetational condition of selected reforested mangrove areas in Calabanga, San Miguel Bay, Philippines. Fifty-six (56) quadrats measuring 10x10m were established strategically in four (4) randomly selected rehabilitated mangrove sites. The overall results show that ten (10) mangrove species were recorded and Rhizophora apiculata and Rhizophora mucronata got the highest importance values of 111.59 and 105.96 respectively. This only shows that mono-specific mangrove species were considered during the rehabilitation of the areas set aside the environmental parameters affecting survival rate and the ecological diversity of the mangrove forest. A framework was developed to guide the local government in developing their sustainable mangrove management plan.