Near Bombay, India Photograph by WWF/ Mauri Rautkari   Bangladesh and India, bordering the Indian Ocean. Mangroves   7,900 square miles (20,400 square kilometers) -- about the size of Massachusetts Critical/Endangered

· Tigers in a Tangle of Trees
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern

Tigers in a Tangle of Trees

The worldâs largest mangrove ecosystem is a tangle of branches and aerial roots, but look carefully and youâll find many surprises. Mudskippers, a kind of fish, can leave the water and climb trees! Hermit crabs scavenge in the roots, surrounded by tiny fish and shrimp that use this habitat as a crucial nursery area. Water monitor lizards and crocodiles bask on the banks, while sharks hunt in the water. And if youâre really lucky, you may glimpse the magnificent Bengali tiger swimming from island to island, searching for its prey.

Special Features

Three large rivers, the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna Rivers, come together in this region before they all empty into the Bay of Bengal. The loads of sediment and other nutrients the rivers carry help create this rich habitat. Mangroves contribute more nutrients as they shed their leaves or drop twigs and bits of bark into the water. As these tree parts decompose, they create food for aquatic animals such as fish and crabs. The fish and crabs, in turn, become food for many mammals, birds, and reptiles. This is the only mangrove region in the world where tigers live.

	This ecoregion lies in the path of many cyclones. These massive storms wreak havoc in human communities, but they may serve as cleansing agents in the mangrove ecosystem.

Wild Side

In this watery world, tigers have adapted well. They swim from island to island in search of prey such as the chital deer, barking deer, and wild pig. Theyâll even grab a macaque (a kind of monkey) from time to time. Two species of crocodile also hunt here, as do their smaller cousins, the Gangetic gavial and the water monitor lizard. If you see dorsal fins sliding through the water, youâve probably found the Gangetic freshwater dolphins. And if you see a fish out of water, donât assume itâs dead: It may be a mudskipper, which can breathe both in and out of the water. Brown-winged kingfishers plunge into the water to grab fish. These colorful yellow birds with brown wings live nowhere else in the world. More than 270 other species of birds live here, including threatened birds such as the lesser adjutant, masked finfoot, and ferruginous pochard.

Cause for Concern

The biggest threat to this ecoregion is a growing human population that depends on the mangroves for their survival. People have cut down more then half of the mangroves for fuel, food, and timber, and are clearing additional areas for shrimp farms. The mangroves are also damaged by soil that erodes from distant Himalayan Mountains and is carried downriver to the mangroves. The diversion of water for irrigation changes the salinity of the water in the mangrove forests. Seven protected areas exist÷15 percent of the ecoregion÷but only one is large enough to protect the tigers and the animals that tigers depend upon.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.