Morphological and reproductive phenology of the non-native red alga Caulacanthus okamurae Yamada (Gigartinales, Caulacanthaceae) from the Slovenian coast (Gulf of Trieste, northern Adriatic)

Abstract

This study reports the occurrence of the non-native red alga Caulacanthus okamurae, previously unknown on the Slovenian coast (Gulf of Trieste, northern Adriatic Sea). The distribution of the species, its abundance, morphological characteristics and reproductive phenology are described. The study is based on seasonal sampling conducted during one year, from winter to autumn 2021, on two different substrates (limestone and sandstone) of the midlittoral zone, and showed a moderate variation in the biomass of C. okamurae populations between the winter-spring and summer-autumn periods. The native algal assemblages of the two substrates impacted by C. okamurae were characterized by generally limited species diversity and consisted mainly of small-sized species with simple morphology. During the study, in addition to non-fertile thalli of C. okamurae, tetrasporophytic thalli with tetrasporocysts and female gametophytes with cystocarps were found.