Mangroves
Nikkor 24-70/2.8 S @24mm, f8, ISO 400
Noon; At certain spots, the mangroves dead leaves and branches get trapped and covered with the mud of sediment-rich water. More material is falling and layers are created. It is a slow, inefficient process but it creates new spots and over time a new ground and more fragmented shoreline. That, together with the changes at the adjacent sea and riverbed, enables the mangroves to extend further. The amphibious forest then acts as a buffer and maintains a balance between the two elements along the more resilient shoreline. In time, more matured forest, crisscrossed with pools and drain channels, can develop and old-growth forests can follow. They reinforce the living dyke with roots, more weight and compacted ground. A more complex biome soon supports a full range of mammalian life with big cats as top predators up to the shores (including tigers in the estuarine system south of Kolkata).
Draining channel in the forest bank at low tide. An inner part of the Baitarani and Brahmani delta sheltered from direct surf. NP
Odisha
