It was a totally different experience for a small group of nature lovers who undertook a trekking into mangrove areas behind the Visakhapatnam International Airport on Sunday.
They came across several rare birds, crabs and other creatures during their visit and expressed their concern at wanton destruction of mangroves which are important feature of the ecosystem and help protect the coastal areas from natural calamities.
Forty members from various walks of life, after their visit, sought designation of mangrove forests as protected parks. The team comprised AU teachers P.S. Rajasekhar, M. Venkaiah, D.E. Babu, Manjulatha and environmental activist J.V. Ratnam. Green activists P. Sirisha of Green Climate, Sridhar Vaddi of Green Guardian Society, Vivek Rathod of Trend Setters and S. Ravikanth Reddy of Meecons formed part of the team.
They said that mangrove areas which were internationally recognised to be rich in biodiversity should be protected from concrete jungle culture. The team members observed that mangrove regions near the Meghadrighedda dam and along the creek have reduced to a considerable extent in the last few years resulting in a drastic decrease in number and different kind of birds visiting the area.
As per the IUCN red list, 46 species of different organisms habituating in mangrove are reported to be extinct. Many species which are not listed in the IUCN red list are also under threat.
