Farid Dahdouh-Guebas holds an MSc biology, an MSc human ecology and a PhD sciences from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. His previous and current research is on tropical coastal ecosystems and includes remote sensing of seagrass distributions, feeding ecology and behavioral ecology of mangrove crabs and ongoing research on mangrove vegetation structure dynamics (using very high resolution remote sensing) and biocomplexity (incl. human factors). His address: Laboratory of General Botany and Nature Management, Mangrove Management Group, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Nico Koedam was trained as a biologist and started physio-ecological research on temperate forest plants. Besides an ecology, biogeography and nature management teaching assignment, he is now heading the research unit General Botany and Nature Management of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, which has major ongoing vegetation research programs (remote sensing and field analysis) on Kenyan, Sri Lankan and Indian mangrove ecosystems (Indian Ocean);

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Biomass and (leaf) litter production of stands of Rhizophora mucronata and Ceriops tagal were assessed in an East African mangrove forest. Inundation frequency of the R, mucronata stand was twice a day (on average 575 min day-'), whereas the C. tagal stand was inundated only during spring tides (on average 116 min day-'). The highest above-ground biomass (24.9 + 4.0 kg dry weight m-2) was present in the R. mucronata stand, in which leaf litter production was 2.51 k 1.15 g DW mw2 day-'.Above-ground biomass and leaf litterfall in the C. tagal stand were 4.01 + 0.34 kg DW m-2 and 1.05 + 0.49 g DW m-2 day-', respectively. There was a distinct seasonal pattern in litterfall in both stands, with lower litterfall values in the wet season. Chloride concentrations were relatively high in senescent leaves, compared with those in green leaves. The decreased litterfall during the wet periods may be related to a reduced accumulation of chloride in the leaves. The difference in inundation frequency between the R. mucronata and C. tagal stands is expected to cause a more substantial tidal export of fallen leaves from the R. mucronata stand. As nitrogen resorption before defoliation was similar for C. tagal(50.9%) and R. mucronata (50.1%), tidal flushing may cause larger nitrogen losses from the R. mucronata stand.

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