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Dalbergia rostrata Hassk., a climbing legume collected from Great Nicobar Island is reported as a new distributional record to Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

A new species of terrestrial orchid Habenaria nicobarica Murugan, Alappatt, Prabhu & Arisdason sp. nov. is described from South Nicobar Islands. Key to species of Habenaria in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, illustration and photograph of the new species are also provided.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjpt.v21i1.19271Bangladesh J. Plant Taxon. 21(1): 77-81, 2014 (June)

Mangroves are one of the world’s dominant coastal ecosystems comprised chiefly of flowering trees and shrubs uniquely adapted to marine and estuarine tidal conditions. The structure and composition of mangrove ecosystem is discussed along with species diversity and distribution at different locations. Mangroves are well known for their morphological and physiological adaptations coping with salt, saturated soils and regular tidal inundation, notably with specialised attributes. Globally, mangrove accounts for less than 1% of the tropical but vital component of coastal ecosystem. There are about 77 species belonging to 21 flowering plant genera found in mangroves with a relatively high degree of specialization for the tidal wetland habitat. In the tropical islands of Andaman and Nicobar, there are 38 species of mangroves, which include some species of mangrove associates and mangrove hybrids. The islands mangrove diversity is compared to the neighbouring island nations such as Sri Lanka and Singapore. Mangrove habitats of the islands are now facing various threats ranging from habitat fragmentation, encroachment, deforestation, marine and coastal pollution, siltation, sedimentation and so on. Various conservation measures including strict protection of mangrove habitats are needed to preserve the rich mangrove diversity in the islands.