An ecological study of melaleuca communities in littoral swamps

The genus Melaleuca is the second largest genus in the family Myrtaceae after Eucalyptus in Australia. Species of Melaleuca are common and representative in swamps and seasonally waterlogged sites in the coastal areas of Southeast Asia and Australia. In the past 25 years in Asia, large-scale agricultural development of coastal swamps was carried out, introducing many environmental and social problems. Restoration of coastal swampy ecosystem using Melaleuca trees is an important issue in Tropical Asia. Melaleuca species is one of the main native trees in the ecosystem and details of the ecological characteristics of Melaleuca species are not very clear. This paper reviews the ecological studies of Melaleuca-dominated forest/woodland in Australia and Tropical Asia, including the floral one