Question

Which trees are commonly associated with tidal forests?

Answer 1

Hint: Tidal forests are also called mangrove forests. It is a type of littoral forest, swamp forest or wetlands. These forests can be found in Indian states like; West Bengal, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Andhra Pradesh etc. The Sundarbans is the largest of such forests.

Complete answer:
The uppermost region of the seawater which is near the shore is called the Littoral zone. The coastal areas and the river deltas are all located in littoral zones. The forests that grow in this zone are known as Littoral forests. These littoral forests are classified into Beach forests (found at the seashores) and Tidal Forests (found at river deltas).

The tidal forests are the ones that are found in deltas where there is a mixture of freshwater and saline water. A type of plant that grows typically in this environment is the mangrove shrubs. It grows in all tidal forests found in the tropical region of the earth i.e. between Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn.

These plants can tolerate very high amounts of salinity and are hence called halophytes. These plants contain a complex salt filtration system and a complex root structure to cope with the high salt content and the rough water movements in the region. They have also adapted to survive in the low-oxygen conditions of the waterlogged soil.

There are over 110 different species of mangrove that are found around the world but only 54 of them are true mangrove i.e. they are found exclusively in tidal forests.

Thus trees that are commonly associated with tidal forests are mangroves.

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