Cuban mangroves

Depending on the salinity, some areas in the forest may be formed by understory species adapted to high levels of salt, such as Acrostichum aureum (golden leather fern), and Batis maritima (saltwort) Among the branches of the larger trees live a large amount of epiphyte plants of the Tillandsia genera - usually called by their Taino name curujeyes in Cuba and the rest of the Caribbean islands, and referred as bromeliads in English - as well as many types of orchids from the Encyclia, Tolumnia, and Vanilla genera.

Historically speaking, mangroves were a key factor in the development of the aboriginal cultures that populated Cuba before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors.

In order to solve those issues, over 969 reservoirs were created, therefore reducing the fresh water flow that keeps mangroves healthy on the coastline.

In some places of the island, such as in Batabanó, these ecosystems have been critically severed, and as a result hundreds of kilometers of coast that were arable or populated have been claimed by rising sea levels, especially during storm season, proving that what was believed to be a solution, has become instead a huge problem.

In 2013, environmental authorities started a program in order to defend and recover the first line of defense against advancing waters and effects of salinization of farmlands, as well as attempting to fix their mangrove forests.

[5] Even with the negative impacts from 500 years of environmentally irresponsible actions, Cuban mangroves are still the most conserved in the Caribbean, making up 69 percent of this region's coastal forests, as well as being the most well preserved.