The term mangrove referes to the whole floral community that can be found in the saline wetlands. The word mangrove originally came from the West African word mangue. They appeared about 114 milion years ago. Adaptations on the extreme conditions they live in include viviparic reproduction, special root adaptaions and salt tolerance. The global importance of mangroves includes protection of the coastal zone from erozion, protection of the juvenil species of fish and invertebrates and as habitat for indengered species. Distribution takes over a surface of 181000 km², the biggest area of distribution is found in South and Southeast Asia. Their distribution is conditioned with sea level and its fluctuations, salinity, air temperature, ocean currents, shore slope, storms and soil substrate. Mangrove community includes 54 real mangrove floral species, arranged in 20 generas and 16 families, as well as 60 associated species in 46 generas. The most common species belong to families Avicenniaceae and Rhizophoraceae. In the last 50 years half of the mangrove community has evanished. Urbanization, tourism, agriculture and aquaculture represent the biggest threats for the mangrove communities. Mangrove conservation include cooperation on the international, national and local community level, as well as education and enviromental law.