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UMT, community replant threatened species, Eye of the Crocodile (Bruguiera hainesii)

UMT, community replant threatened species, Eye of the Crocodile (Bruguiera hainesii)

Thursday, 25/07/2023

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A total of 200 young trees from the species Bruguiera hainesii, or Eye of the Crocodile, have been replanted at Setiu Wetlands in an effort to conserve the declining trees for environmental sustainability.

The Eye of the Crocodile is one of the mangrove trees listed as extremely threatened species.

The effort will help to increase the quantity of the mangrove trees and contribute towards the conservation of the ecosystem of the mangroves that function as habitats for flora and faunas. They serve as barricades that protect coastlines from erosion caused by strong waves.

Project leader Prof. Dr. Shamsul Bahri Abdul Razak said the programme not only focuses on mangrove tree planting but also provides a platform for Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) to educate the society on the awareness of the importance of conserving the environment.

“There are only about 200 of these species of mangrove tree recorded.

“Mangrove conservation is important because the area is a natural protection against coastline erosion.

Dr. Shamsul, also a stingless bee expert, said the tree seeds were obtained from UMT Community Scientist Tengku Azam Tg Mat, more popularly known as Ayah Ku, who regularly collects the seeds along the coastlines.

“Our society is alert towards the ecosystem and thank you to Ayah Ku for his effort in planting the tree seeds that may have been brought to the coastline during flood.

He said the project also drew the attention of the local community and involvement of 70 school students who have been given the exposure on the importance of the environmental maintenance and mangrove conservation.

“The two schools were S.K. Kuala Setiu and SMK Chalok. The programme was sponsored by BeeSure Sdn. Bhd, which has been helping the UMT stingless bee SIG for the past six years in training the local community to rear stingless bees for income generation.

He added the programme that aims to create awareness of the importance of environmental conservation was held in connection with another earlier programme, Love the Stingless Bees, Love the Environment, held last year at Kg. Pengkalan Gelap, Setiu.

 

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Corporate Communications Office

Universiti Malaysia Terengganu