The ecology of temperate salt-marsh fucoids. I. Occurrence and distribution of Ascophyllum nodosum ecads
Brinkhuis, B.H. (1976). The ecology of temperate salt-marsh fucoids. I. Occurrence and distribution of Ascophyllum nodosum ecads. Mar. Biol. (Berl.) 34(4): 325-338. https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/bf00398126
In: Marine Biology: International Journal on Life in Oceans and Coastal Waters. Springer: Heidelberg; Berlin. ISSN 0025-3162; e-ISSN 1432-1793, more
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| Author keywords |
Biomass, Salt Marsh, Late Summer, Morphological Characterization, Morphological Differentiation |
| Abstract |
The distribution of several free-living Ascophyllum nodosum ecads, including scorpioides and mackaii, in a temperate salt marsh is described. Morphological characterization of these ecads by the presence or absence of air bladders and reproductive receptacles, and size and shape of fronds, indicated that several free-living forms occur throughout the marsh. Plants resembling the ecad mackaii were more closely associated with exposed areas along the low-tide regions, while scorpioides-type ecads prevailed on the Spartina alterniflora-dominated marsh banks and flats in the middle and upper intertidal regions of the marsh. Maximum biomass of ecads occurred during the spring months in the absence of S. alterniflora, whereas minimum ecad biomass was associated with maximum S. alterniflora densities in the late summer and fall months. Morphological differentiation of dwarf-type ecads was related to environmental components other than exposure to low and/or fluctuating salinities. |
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