Species composition and structure of mangrove forest exposed to plastic waste in Angke Kapuk mangrove protected forest, Jakarta

Abstract

Angke Kapuk Mangrove Protected Forest (AKMPF) is one of the protected mangrove forests in the coastal area of DKI Jakarta exposed to plastic marine debris. This study aims to determine species composition and forest structures of mangrove forest exposed to plastic waste which is important as basic information for sustainable mangrove forest management in Angke Kapuk mangrove protected forest. Vegetation data were collected using the sampling unit of transect for tree and line plot for forest regeneration inventories. Those data were analysed for the density, frequency, dominance, species diversity, and species distribution pattern. The results show that the area of AKMPF exposed to plastic waste consists of 9 mangrove species, including 6 species of true mangrove, 2 species associated mangrove, and 1 species of palm, with the dominant species are Avicennia marina for tree with its regenerations and Acrostichum aureum for groundcover, which are species that live in disturbed mangrove areas. Mangrove trees in this area have a height class between 4 – 25 meters, while stem diameter class were between 10.00 – 69.75 cm. The most distribution pattern of species in this area generally was regular, except sapling of Avicennia marina, seedling of Rhizophora mucronata, and Acrostichum aureum distributed randomly.