David Attenborough describes how mangrove trees are adapted to living in saline coastal environments. For almost all plants, salt water is lethal, yet the Red Mangrove tree is submerged in sea water daily by the tide. This plant has developed an ingenious mechanism to allow it to survive in such a hostile environment; their roots are covered in nodules which allow water and oxygen into the plant, but restrict the flow of salt. Any excess salt that gets inside is pumped into a few 'sacrificial leaves' which the tree then sheds. First broadcast in the series 'Life' in 2009.
Could be linked with experiments and microscopic analysis of plant leaves and cells. An experiment putting a plant into salt water and comparing an identical plant in tap water could emphasise the unique adaptation the Red Mango has developed.
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