Could Long, Dense Walls of "Megamangroves" Deflect The Deadliest of Storms?

This is the world's tallest tree--the coast redwood. It can grow as high up as 115.5 meters. Any taller, and the transportation of water in its vascular tissues would not climb all the way.

But in an alternate Earth, there are multiple species of angiosperm trees whose roots need to be completely submerged, therefore grow in seawater five to 25 meters beneath the surface. Such trees include a species averaging 150 meters tall and 12 wide, with crowns averaging 180 meters wide and branches 3.8 meters wide. Far smaller species grow in brackish and freshwater estuaries, riverbanks and lakeshores, the tallest standing 88.5 meters tall. Such trees with roots that need to be submerged 24/7 could have easier, more efficient water transportation, allowing them to grow taller even than the redwoods.

Wherever the water flows, these multiple species of mangroves and "megamangroves" form dense, near-impenetrable groves and forests. Each forest, in fact, has been described as "a Great Wall against storm surges". But can they be enough to deflect hurricanes and tornadoes?

posted over 4 years ago

JohnWDailey‭

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