Three specimens of one of the world’s rarest mangrove tree species (Bruguiera hainesii) were recently discovered within Rakhine State’s Wunbaik Forest Reserve. According to 2010 data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the species had a total known population of approximately 200 trees in the world at the time of assessment.
The Bruguiera hainesii is also referred to as the ‘Eye of the crocodile’ due to the crocodile eye resemblance of the breathing pores on its trunk. It was categorized as ‘Critically Endangered’ by the IUCN in 2010, just two classifications behind ‘Extinct in the wild’ and ‘Extinct’.
“There is a total of 14 trees [of this species] on the Yan Byae forestland, particularly within the Wunbaik Forest Reserve. We’re still taking a census, and won’t know the exact number until that’s done. The trees are large and mature plants,” Win Sithu Maung, the forestry officer in charge, explained to 7Day.
According to Win Maung, CEO of the Yangon office of Worldview Myanmar, an NGO that is working towards preserving the country’s remaining mangrove forests, there have been a total of 14 Bruguiera hainesii sightings in Myanmar in recent years — the first one was of one tree in 2006, followed by two in 2015, eight in 2016, and now three (so far) in 2017.
A Frontier article from last year discussed the importance of conserving the country’s dwindling number of mangrove forests, which can act as a ‘coastal buffer’ against extreme weather conditions, not to mention allow for ecosystems that nurture and protect a range of marine life.
