Mangrove forests could play a crucial role in protecting coastal areas from rising sea levels caused by climate change, New Zealand researchers said Wednesday.

The research used leading edge mathematical simulations to study how mangrove forests responded to rising sea levels, said Associate Professor Giovanni Coco, of the University of Auckland.

They found that as a mangrove forest began to develop, the creation of a network of channels was relatively fast.

Over 160 years, tidal currents, sediment transport and mangroves significantly modified the estuarine environment, creating a dense channel network.

Within the mangrove forest, the channels become shallower through organic matter from the trees, reduced sediment and sediment trapping and the sea bed began to rise by a few millimeters each year until the area is no longer inundated by the tide.

"These findings show that mangrove forests play a central role in estuarine and salt marsh environments," Coco said in a statement.

"As we anticipate changes caused by climate change, then it's important to know the effect sea level rise might have, particularly around our coasts," he said.

"Mangroves appear to be resilient to sea level rise and are likely to be able to sustain such climatic change. The implications for the New Zealand coastline are considerable and will require new thinking in terms of sediment budgets and response to climatic changes."