By Xinhua
Dhaka : Cyclone Sidr has caused damage to over 25 percent of mangrove forests in Bangladesh’s southwestern Sundarbans, the world’s largest, The Independent newspaper reported Thursday.
A preliminary assessment by forest officials said about 25-30,000 hectares of mangrove forests have been “severely” damaged, while another 70-80,000 hectares of forestland have suffered partial damage.
Sundarbans is located 350 km southwest of capital Dhaka in the greater Khulna district. It also covers southwestern Bagerhat and Satkhira regions.
It covers an area of 600,000 hectares, of which about 414,000 hectares are forested while the remaining areas are water bodies. A network of rivers, canals and creeks criss-crosses the forests.
Sundarbans is the largest forest area in the country, home to about 150,000 deer, 440 Royal Bengal tigers and over 100,000 monkeys and rare species of birds.
About 24 deer and a forest official were killed in the cyclone. Currently, forest officials are assessing the total damage to the ecosystem.