Perennial Biomass Production in Arid Mangrove Systems on the Red Sea Coast of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Above and below biomass production were estimated in two Avicennia marina mangrove stands in Yanbu and Shuaiba regions on the Red sea coast of Saudi Arabia. Allometric equations were used to estimate above ground biomasses including stem, branches, leaves and total biomass while aerial and fine roots were estimated using ground plots and random coring, respectively. Linear relationships on log-log scale with tree DBH and height as predictor parameters best described the biomass variations. The total above ground biomass in Shuaiba, (18.58 ha-I ) was significantly higher than that of Yanbu (10.77 t ha-I ) (p<0.05). Shuaiba also had significantly higher aerial and fine roots (23.7 and 96.42 t ha-I ) than Yanbu (10.1 and 39.1 t ha-I , respectively) (p<0.05). Overall, above ground biomass of the two sites was 14.77 t ha-I while below ground fine roots was 67.8 t ha -I and a shoot to root ratio of 0.22 indicating high biomass allocation to roots. These findings are the first reported for the Red sea mangroves and were comparable to estimates reported in other locations at similar extreme environmental conditions. In addition, these finding can serve as a baseline study for monitoring annual biomass increment as a function of site productivity and health.