To reestablish mangroves on the island of Bali, workers set out some 1,300 saplings an acre (0.4 hectares); nearly a thousand acres (400 hectares) have been planted. Indonesia’s forestry minister says that since the deadly 2004 tsunami, his people have come to value the protection coastal forests can provide.
This photograph was taken on assignment for "Mangroves: Forests of the Tide" in the February 2007 National Geographic.
Butterfly and Trees, Madidi National Park, Bolivia
Photograph by Joel Sartore
This Month in Photo of the Day: Nature
The locals say palm trees here grow legs and walk to find more sunlight. Standing on stilts, Madidi’s “walking” trees, at right, appear to move as their shadyside roots wither. The palms may need strong root structures to quickly reach optimum height.
This photograph was taken on assignment for "Madidi: Will Bolivia Drown Its New National Park?" in the March 2000 National Geographic.
Gray reef sharks and red snappers hover above a patch of table coral, waiting for prey fish to emerge. "They go after everything that moves," observed Enric Sala, a marine ecologist on Spain’s National Council for Scientific Research and a National Geographic fellow. Because of their abundance and the resulting competition for food, the sharks and snappers at Kingman Reef, Sala said, "are always on the verge of hunger." Kingman Reef is part of a chain of Pacific atolls and islands (called the Line Islands) that straddles the Equator south of Hawaii.
Nestled 3,000 feet [900 meters] deep into Havasu Canyon lies the land of the Havasupai. The native Indians are named for the area, the people of the Blue Green. The area is known around the world for its blue waters and spectacular waterfalls. Havasu Creek, a year-round stream with incredible aquamarine water, flows by the village and descends another 1,400 feet [425 meters], passing over five waterfalls. Navajo Falls is the most secluded and is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful places on Earth.
