Growing up, Furry Ambari the COMENSUM – community Environment Sustainable Mari culture says he could chase after crabs in mangroves forests and catch it before it got into its hideout.
But, in the 90’s the shoreline at Majaoni village along Mtwapa Creek in Mombasa county was destroyed as communities grew and demand for building materials rose. As a result, the crabs, shrimps, fish disappeared from this shoreline.
So, he and friends came together to plant these forests afresh and educate their communities on why they need to protect these forests. For the last seven years, they have managed to replant six of the 18 acres of mangrove forests. Ambari says their efforts are now paying up as crabs and gastropods are recolonising the mangroves again.
Mangroves are trees and shrubs that grows in the area where the ocean meets the land between high and low tides. There are different species of trees and they grow
in areas with low-oxygen soil, where slow-moving waters allows fine sediments to accumulate.
It is these forests that help stabilise shorelines. Hence the prevent erosion while protecting the land and the people living along the coastal line from waves and storms. Mangroves provide ideal breeding grounds for much of the world’s fish, shrimp, crabs, and other shellfish.