Title:
The functional morphology of turf-forming seaweeds: persistence in stressful marine habitats

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dc.contributor.author Hay, Mark E. en_US
dc.contributor.corporatename Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute en_US
dc.contributor.corporatename University of California, Irvine. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology en_US
dc.date.accessioned 2011-01-31T20:10:38Z
dc.date.available 2011-01-31T20:10:38Z
dc.date.issued 1981-06
dc.description DOI: 10.2307/1937742
dc.description © Ecological Society of America en_US
dc.description.abstract Many seaweeds that occur in physically stressful habitats or habitats subject to moderate herbivory grow as colonial turfs rather than as spatially separated individuals. The turf growth form is energetically expensive (the net production per gram ash free dry mass of turfs being 33—61% lower than that of individuals), but turfs suffer less physiological damage during desiccating low tides and lose less biomass to herbivores. The upper portions of turf—forming species show significantly greater rates of apparent photosynthesis and dark respiration than do the lower portions. This spatial partitioning of photosynthetic activity decreases the energetic cost of the turf arrangement and may allow basal portions to function as persistent resting stages during periods of adverse conditions when uprights cannot be maintained. Turf—forming species are specialized for areas that are subject to moderate grazing pressure and physical stresses. They are dependent upon these factors to prevent their competitive exclusion by more productive, but less resistant, seaweeds. Damage to apical portions causes increased branching that results in a more tightly compacted turf. Algae that regenerate in this way can adjust their growth form in accordance with varying levels of disturbance encountered in different habitats and thus incur the minimal cost consistent with survival in that area. For seaweeds occurring in stressful habitats, selection has favored characteristics that increase persistence in space and time even though these involve considerable losses in competitive ability and productivity. en_US
dc.identifier.citation Hay, Mark E. 1981. The Functional Morphology of Turf-Forming Seaweeds: Persistence in Stressful Marine Habitats. Ecology 62:739–750. en_US
dc.identifier.doi 10.2307/1937742
dc.identifier.issn 0012-9658
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/1853/36771
dc.language.iso en_US en_US
dc.publisher Georgia Institute of Technology en_US
dc.publisher.original Ecological Society of America
dc.subject Competition en_US
dc.subject Desiccation en_US
dc.subject Dictyota en_US
dc.subject Fringing reef en_US
dc.subject Halimeda en_US
dc.subject Herbivory en_US
dc.subject Laurencia en_US
dc.subject Morphology en_US
dc.subject Productivity en_US
dc.subject Seaweeds en_US
dc.subject Turf en_US
dc.title The functional morphology of turf-forming seaweeds: persistence in stressful marine habitats en_US
dc.type Text
dc.type.genre Article
dspace.entity.type Publication
local.contributor.author Hay, Mark E.
local.contributor.corporatename College of Sciences
local.contributor.corporatename School of Biological Sciences
relation.isAuthorOfPublication f3c1eedd-ee9e-4723-b2d5-c793a79b0bbf
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication 85042be6-2d68-4e07-b384-e1f908fae48a
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication c8b3bd08-9989-40d3-afe3-e0ad8d5c72b5
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