This mangrove ecoregion fringes the Arabian Sea coast of Sindh Province in Pakistan, where the Indus River builds a vast alluvial delta, and extends to the Gulfs of Kutch and Khambhat in Gujarat, India. Its forests are overwhelmingly dominated by the grey or white mangrove (Avicennia marina), a species that tolerates exceptionally high salinity, with red mangrove (Rhizophora mucronata) and Indian mangrove (Ceriops tagal) appearing on small patches of higher ground. The climate is harsh and arid, swinging from near-freezing winters to summer temperatures around 50 degrees Celsius, with most rain confined to the southwest monsoon between July and September and very high evaporation that keeps the tidal flats intensely saline. These mangroves form one of the world's largest such forests and serve as a critical staging area for tens of thousands of migratory birds, including greater flamingos and the ecoregion's flagship Dalmatian pelican. The habitat faces serious pressure from reduced Indus freshwater flow, pollution and oil spills near Karachi, and cutting for fuelwood and grazing.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 24.6°N, 67.3°E.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
12a-13b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
12a-13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +3.9°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
At a glance
Dominant biome
Mangroves
Realm
Indomalayan
Approximate area
2,319 sq mi
Conservation tier
Nature Could Recover (Dinerstein NNH 3)
About the mangroves biome
Coastal tidal forests of salt-tolerant trees rooted in sheltered estuaries and shorelines of the tropics and subtropics. Mangroves buffer coasts from storms, store large amounts of carbon, and serve as nurseries for fish and shellfish.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
Computed from each plant's stated USDA zone range against this ecoregion's CHELSA-derived current zone range, with the CHELSA mid-century warming delta applied for the projection. Plants whose stated range falls outside both the current and projected zone end up dropped; the rest land in one of the three buckets below.
Climate-resilient picks · 4
These plants fit this ecoregion today AND remain in range under the mid-century SSP3-7.0 projection. Lead with these for a planting that holds up as the climate shifts.
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.