The vast mangrove forests in the Florida Everglades took up to four years to bounce back from the pummeling they took from Hurricane Irma in 2017 and some still showed no sign of recovery up to six years later, new research shows.
The study led by Florida International University looked at 10 years of satellite data to track changes in leafiness and moisture in Southwest Florida mangroves, including years before and after Irma. The trends showed that most mangrove areas recovered within two to four years.
But mangroves died or took longer to recover in areas where storm surge left behind ponds of saltwater that didn't drain away.
The study, published in August in the journal Remote Sensing Applications: Society and Environment, is the latest to look at the impacts of hurricanes on mangroves, a critical barrier against hurricanes and storm surge.
More than 900 square miles of mangrove forest exist in Florida with much of it in the southern part of the peninsula, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection. Everglades National Park in particular is home to the largest contiguous stand of protected mangrove forest in the entire Western Hemisphere. Native to Florida, mangroves thrive in coastal areas because they have the ability to derive freshwater from saltwater.
In areas like the Lopez River section of the national park, dark water flows through and around thick islands of mangroves. More than 220 fish species, 181 bird species, 24 reptile and amphibian species, and 18 mammal species depend on the trees, according to the University of Florida.
They are also important to humans. Their dense canopies and extensive root systems absorb and dissipate energy from storm surge and help hold soil in place. The Everglades Foundation estimates that mangroves reduced flooding from Hurricane Irma by about 14%, saving the region $725 million in damage.
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