PERSEPSI MASYARAKAT TERHADAP KEBERADAAN HUTAN MANGROVE DI DUSUN TANAH MERAH DESA SUTERA KECAMATAN SUKADANA KABUPATEN KAYONG UTARA

Mangrove forest is a unique and distinctive form of forest ecosystem, found in tidal areas in coastal and coastal areas. Perception is an event that is obtained by concluding information, interpreting messages. The research objective is to obtain community perceptions of the existence of mangrove forests in Tanah Merah Hamlet, Sutera Village, to explain the relationship of each knowledge, dependence and cosmopolitan factor to community perceptions. The study used a survey method and determined the sample of respondents by interviewing 83 respondents with a guided questionnaire, and the observation technique was carried out in Tanah Merah Hamlet, Sutera Village. The results showed that people's perceptions of the existence of mangrove forests in Tanah Merah Hamlet, Sutera Village tended to be moderate with 30 respondents (36.14%) high, 41 respondents (41.46%) medium and 12 respondents (14.46%) low. Communities tend to know about the existence of mangrove forest areas and feel the benefits, but do not fully understand and know the purpose and function of these mangrove forest areas.Keywords: Community Perception, Mangrove Forest, The Tanah Merah Village, The ExistenceAbstrakHutan mangrove merupakan salah satu bentuk ekosistem hutan yang unik dan khas, terdapat di daerah pasang surut di wilayah pesisir dan pantai. Persepsi merupakan peristiwa yang diperoleh dengan menyimpulkan informasi, menafsirkan pesan.. Tujuan penelitian mendapatkan persepsi masyarakat terhadap keberadaan hutan mangrove di Dusun Tanah Merah Desa Sutera, menjelaskan hubungan masing-masing faktor pengetahuan, ketergantungan dan kosmopolitan terhadap persespi masyarakat. Penelitian menggunakan metode survei dan penentuan sampel responden dengan teknik wawancara terhadap 83 responden dengan panduan kuesioner, dan teknik observasi dilakukan di Dusun Tanah Merah Desa Sutera. Hasil penelitian menunjukan persepsi masyarakat terhadap keberadaan hutan mangrove di Dusun Tanah Merah Desa Sutera cenderung sedang dengan 30 responden (36,14%) tinggi 41 responden (41,46%) sedang dan 12 responden (14,46%) rendah. Masyarakat cenderung mengetahui keberadaan kawasan hutan mangrove dan merasakan manfaatnya namun tidak sepenuhnya memahami dan mengetahui tujuan dan fungsi adanya kawasan hutan mangrove tersebut.Kata kunci: Dusun Tanah Merah, Hutan Mangrov, Keberadaan, Persepsi Masyaraka