Demarcation of sites ideal for mangrove afforestation from Ernakulam, Thrissur and Malappuram districts of Kerala, India

Restoration/ Afforestation of mangroves is yet to make a successful leap in the state of Kerala. The present investigation has been carried out to delineate the sites for species specific mangrove afforestation along the central part of Kerala, include Ernakulam, Thrissur and Malappuram districts based on hydrogeochemical and sedimentological characteristics. The tolerance range of selected mangrove species towards different physico-chemical parameters and textural characterization have been taken in to account for demarcating the most ideal sites for species specific mangrove afforestation. Thus it can be concluded that out of 54 sites studied, 9 sites each for Avicennia officinalis and Sonneratia alba; 11 sites each for Bruguiera cylindrica and Excoecaria agallocha; 13 sites for Rhizophora mucronata can be treated as the most ideal sites for the afforestation of such species along 3 districts of Kerala.