EARTHLARGEST COASTAL MANGROVE FOREST
The Sundarbans stretches for almost 6,000 sq mi
(15,540 km^2 ) across India and Bangladesh, and acts as a
natural barrier against the tsunamis and cyclones that often
blow in from the Bay of Bengal. With saltwater-tolerant
roots, this forest’s mangrove trees may exceed 70 ft (21 m)
in height. They sit on islands of layered sand and grey clay,
which have been deposited by rivers that flow for more than
1,000 mi (1,600 km) from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal.LARGEST PROTECTED WETLAND
On 2 Feb 2013, the government of Bolivia declared that
more than 69,000 km^2 (26,640 sq mi) of the Llanos de Moxos
would be protected as part of the Ramsar Convention.
The Llanos de Moxos is a tropical wetland consisting of
savannahs that alternate between seasons of drought and
flood, and is located near the borders of Bolivia, Peru and
Brazil. Each year, World Wetlands Day is marked on 2 Feb.GREATEST MANGROVE COVER (COUNTRY)
According to a report by US scientists Stuart Hamilton
and Daniel Casey, Indonesia has the greatest mangrove
growth. The duo calculated that as of 2014, Indonesia
had 42,278 km^2 (16,323 sq mi) of mangrove biome,
25.79% of the global total. Hamilton and Casey analysed
data from three databases: Global Forest Change,
Terrestrial Ecosystems of the World, and Mangrove
Forests of the World. Seen below are mangroves in
a remote part of Raja Ampat, Indonesia.LARGEST PROTECTED SWAMP
The Sudd is a swamp in the lowlands of South Sudan. In the dry season, it is some
30,000 km^2 (11,580 sq mi) in size, but during the wet season it can more than quadruple
to approximately 130,000 km^2 (50,190 sq mi). Around half of its water is lost each year
to evaporation. Since 2006, some 57,000 km^2 (22,000 sq mi) has been protected by the
Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, aka the Ramsar Convention, a global
treaty intended to help preserve such habitats. It is named after the city of Ramsar in Iran,
where the convention was first signed in 1971.LARGEST SWAMP
Located principally in south-western Brazil, but with small areas within neighbouring
Bolivia and Paraguay too, the Pantanal (Spanish for “marshland”) covers 150,000 km^2
(57,915 sq mi) – greater than the total surface area of England. During the rainy season
(December–May), 80% of the Pantanal is flooded and it contains the greatest diversity
of water plants in the world.Mangroves
are shrubs
or trees that live
in coastal swamps.
Their dense roots help
them remain upright on
unstable ground. Shown
(far right) are mangroves
at high tide on
Bunaken Island in
Indonesia.