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Colpomenia sinuosa (Mert. ex Roth) Derbès & Solier |
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Description: Plants smooth, hemispherical, irregularly lobed, golden brown, hollow, to 30 cm diam and 10 cm high, with multiple attachments to substrate. Often covered with fine colorless hairs. Reproductive sori as dark raised patches on surface. Thallus membranaceous, 300-500 um thick, 4-6 cell layers. Plurilocular sporangia cylindrical to club-shaped, 3.7-8 um diam, 18-30 um long, in dense clusters, scattered on surface. Introduction and Origin: Native to Hawaii. Hawaiian Distribution: Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Habitat: Lower intertidal to 15 m deep. Firmly attached to hard surfaces or epiphytic on other organisms. Environmental Effects: Not studied. May affect recruitment of other species by successfully competing for substrate. World Distribution: Florida, Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Commercial Interests: None. When growing attached to oysters it floats away with the oyster when the air-filled thalli grow large enough, hence its name of oyster thief (Farnham 1980). Rate of Spread / Method: Growth rates unknown. Propagates through spores, and possibly by fragmentation. Factors likely to influence Spread and Distribution: Warmer temperatures, nutrients availability. Reasons for Success: In western Europe, rapid growth rate, absence of natural grazers. Control Methods: None used. References: http://www.jncc.gov.uk/marine/dns/d2_1_3_1.htm Farnham, W.F. 1980. Studies on aliens in the marine flora of southern England. In: The shore environment, volume 2: ecosystems, ed. by J.H. Price, D.E.G. Irvine & W.F. Farnham, 875-914. London, Academic Press. (Systematics Association Special Volume, No. 17B.) Cotton, A.D. 1908. Colpomenia sinuosa in Britain. Journal of Botany, London, 46: 82-83. Farnham, W.F. 1980. Studies on aliens in the marine flora of southern England. In: The shore environment, volume 2: ecosystems, ed. by J.H. Price, D.E.G. Irvine & W.F. Farnham, 875-914. London, Academic Press. (Systematics Association Special Volume, No. 17B.) |
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