The Chlorophytes of Curaçao (Caribbean): a revised checklist for the south-west coast

BISCHOF, KAI; TITLYANOVA, TAMARA V.; NUGUES, MAGGY M.; FRICKE, ANNA; TEICHBERG, MIRTA

BOTANICA MARINA

WALTER DE GRUYTER & CO

Lugar: Berlin; Año: 2018 vol. 61 p. 33 - 46

0006-8055

The global trend of unprecedented losses incoral reefs is particularly striking in the Caribbean, wheredense algal assemblages are commonly replacing corals.So far, hardly anything is known about the ecologyof the dominant algal groups. The present study compiledrecords of Chlorophytes from nine studies in the shallowreefs of Curaçao in the years preceding the onset of coralreef decline (1908?1978) and compared them with recordsfrom three recent (2007?2009) expeditions conducted atthe same and nearby study locations along the south-westcoast of the island. A total of 107 species were encountered,including seven new records for Curaçao (Anadyomenesaldanhae, Bryopsis hypnoides, Chaetomorphaminima, Derbesia fastigiata, Ulva flexuosa subsp. paradoxa,Ulvella scutata and Ulvella lens). Sampled materialrevealed a higher species number during the dry seasonsthan during the wet seasons, indicating a seasonal variationin algal growth. Most species grew on hard substratumor were epibiotic, and 13 species were found growingon more than one substratum. Comparisons with earlierstudies suggest an extension in depth range for nine species.The present work provides a comprehensive overviewof the distribution of Chlorophytes of the island andcan serve as an important baseline for further research oncoral reef ecosystem changes.