A guided walk through Havelock's mangroves with a naturalist, the forest that grows in salt water. See how prop roots and breathing roots work, why young fish shelter here, and how these trees hold the coastline together. Around 2 hours, timed to the tide.
Want more details?A mangrove is a tree that has solved a problem no other tree has managed. It grows with its roots in salt water, in mud with almost no oxygen in it, on ground that floods and drains twice a day. Walk into one of Havelock's mangrove stands and the first thing you notice is the roots, thousands of them, arching and spiking out of the mud in shapes that make no sense until somebody explains what each one is for.
That is what this walk is. Two hours with a naturalist inside the forest where land and sea overlap, learning how these trees survive, why almost every reef fish you will ever see on a dive started life among these roots, and what is moving around in the mud while you stand there.
A mangrove looks like two different places at high and low water. At high tide the roots are submerged and the fish move in to feed and shelter. At low tide the mud is exposed, the crabs come out, the mudskippers take over, and you can actually see the root structures that hold the whole thing up. Different tides suit different parts of the walk, so we plan your slot around what the water is doing on your date rather than running at a fixed hour.
This walk takes place in a tidal environment, so the timing and the route depend on the tide, rainfall and weather on the day. We confirm your start time the day before. If conditions are unsuitable we move the walk or refund it in full.
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands hold one of the largest and most species-rich mangrove areas in India. For a group of islands this size that is a remarkable amount of mangrove, and it is a large part of why the waters around Havelock are as productive as they are.
Mangroves grow in the intertidal zone, in the band where the tide floods and drains and where fresh water running off the land meets salt water coming in from the sea. It is a narrow set of conditions, and only a small number of tree families have ever managed to live in it.
Salt is the central problem. Ordinary trees die in sea water because salt pulls water back out of their roots. Mangroves get around it in three different ways, and different species lean on different ones.
Some mangroves exclude the great majority of salt at the root membrane before the water ever enters the tree. The roots work as an ultrafilter, and what reaches the leaves is close to fresh water.
Others let the salt in and push it back out through glands on the leaf surface. On a dry day you can see the crystals on the leaves, and if you touch one and taste your finger it is unmistakably salty.
A third approach is to move salt into older leaves and then drop them. The tree loses the leaf and the salt load with it. Yellow leaves scattered in the mud are often this, not ill health.
Root shape is the easiest way to tell mangrove types apart, and once you know the four common forms you will spot them everywhere along the coast.
A seed dropped into salt water and tidal mud has very poor odds. Many mangroves avoid the problem entirely by letting the seed germinate while it is still attached to the parent tree, then dropping a fully formed seedling. In Rhizophora these look like long green javelins hanging from the branches. When one drops it either spears into the mud below and roots on the spot, or it floats away on the tide, staying alive for weeks until it grounds somewhere it can grow. It is one of the few plants that gives birth rather than sowing.
Someone who can tell a pneumatophore from a prop root and explain what each animal in the mud is doing, for the whole walk.
Small enough that everyone can hear, and quiet enough that the crabs and mudskippers do not all disappear at once.
At a slow pace, with time to stop and watch rather than march through.
Your slot is set around the tide on your date, so you see the part of the ecosystem that is actually accessible.
Salt filtration, root types, viviparous seedlings, nursery habitat and coastal protection, in plain language.
Sent on WhatsApp with your start time once the tide for your date is known.
If you would rather see mangroves from the water than from the mud, we also run mangrove kayaking, which is a different experience with the same trees. The intertidal walk is the natural companion to this one.
A guided walk on foot through mangrove forest, the trees that grow in salt water where the coast meets the sea. On this walk a naturalist explains how mangroves survive in salt and airless mud, what the different root shapes are for, and points out the crabs, mudskippers, molluscs and birds living around them. It lasts around two hours.
Mangrove stands sit along sheltered sections of Havelock's coast, in creeks and inlets where the water is calm and the tide floods in and out. We take small groups to a stand suited to the tide on your date, and confirm the meeting point when you book.
Mostly on the ground beside and among the roots, which is usually soft and often muddy. It is not a swim and it is not deep water. Wear footwear that grips and that you do not mind ruining, and expect your feet to get dirty.
Three ways, and different species rely on different ones. Some filter out most of the salt at the root membrane before the water enters the tree. Some let it in and excrete it through glands on the leaves, leaving visible salt crystals. Some move salt into old leaves and drop them. Many combine these.
Those are pneumatophores, and they are how the tree breathes. Mangrove mud contains almost no oxygen, so species such as Avicennia send pencil-shaped roots vertically up into the air. Pores on them take in oxygen while the tide is out and seal when the water covers them again.
Usually, on a lower tide, when the mud is exposed and both are out and active. Neither can be guaranteed, since it depends on tide, weather and time of day, but mudskippers and fiddler crab colonies are among the most reliably seen animals on this walk.
There can be, which is why insect repellent is on the list of things to bring rather than a suggestion. Wearing long sleeves and long trousers in a light fabric helps as well. Your guide will tell you what to expect for your slot.
Yes. There is no depth involved, the pace is slow, and mudskippers and fiddler crabs hold children's attention better than most things on the island. Footwear with a grip and an adult alongside is all that is needed.
The walk is on foot, around two hours, and is about the trees and the mud life, with a naturalist explaining the ecosystem. Mangrove kayaking takes you through the channels by water, covers more distance, and is more about the paddle and the setting than close-up natural history. They suit different days and different people.
₹1,500 per person plus 18% GST, which comes to ₹1,770 per person. That covers the naturalist for the full walk in a small group. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
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