中国红树林湿地资源及其保护

红树林是我国海岸湿地类型之一，自然分布于海南、广西、广东、福建、台湾等省区。现有面积约1．5万hm^2，包括26种真红树，11种半红树。中国红树林湿地直接经济价值不高，而防浪护岩、维持海岸生物多样性和渔业资源、净化水质、美化环境等生态环境功能显，属于特别容易被价值低估的海岩生态关键区。1960年代以来的毁林转海造田或盐田，毁林围塘养殖，毁林围海搞城市建设等人类不合理开发活动，使红树林面积剧减，环境恶化，红树林湿地资源濒危，急需加强管理和保护。现已建成各级红树林自然保护区18个，还需要吸收科学家积极参与，加强科学研究和宣传教育，以尽快扭转退化趋势，实现红树林湿地生态系统的恢复和可持续发展。

The mangrove wetland resources and their conservation in China

Mangrove wetlands are evergreen tree and shrub communities mainly consisting of mangrove plants, usually growing on the upper part of tidal flat of tropical and subtropical coasts, and periodically inundated by tidal water. Mangroves are naturally distributed in Hainan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Taiwan and Fujian provinces, with an area of about 15,000 ha.There are 26 exclusive mangrove species and 11 semi-exclusive mangrove species in China. The mangrove wetland in China has low direct economic values, but plays an important role in protecting coastline, keeping coastal biodiversity and fishery resources, clarifying sea water, beautifying environment, and so on. It is a coastal ecologically critical area that is specially easy to be undervalued.The mangrove areas have been sharply reduced because of human s unreasonable exploiting activities,such as des-troying mangroves for agricultural and salt fields, for aquaculture ponds and for urban construction, and the mangrove wetland resources are in danger and need urgent efficient management and protection. Eighteen mangrove natural reserves have been established. It is essential to attract scientists to take an active part in scientific researches on mangrove wetlands, to spread the knowledge about mangrove environmental functions, to reverse its decline trend and to achieve the ecological restoration and sustainable deve-lopment of mangrove wetland ecosystem.