Volume 69
Taxonomic Guide to Pelagic Sargassum in the Caribbean Sea and North Atlantic
Authors
Wrinn, C., J.M. Schell, D.S. Goodwin, A.N.S. Siuda Download PDF Open PDF in BrowserOther Information
Date: November, 2016
Pages: 217 - 219
Event: Proceedings of the Sixty eigth Annual Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute
City: Grand Cayman
Country: Cayman Islands
Abstract
Sargassum is a pelagic seaweed found in the Sargasso Sea, Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico and greater North Atlantic Ocean. In recent years, Caribbean islands and the west African coast have experienced massive influxes of Sargassum. Much of the seaweed that washed ashore during the 2014 - 2015 inundation period was identified as S. natans VIII (SnVIII), arriving from the North Equatorial Recirculation Region (Johnson et al. 2012) which expanded the known range of Sargassum beyond historical patterns. In contrast, other Sargassum forms traditionally found in the Caribbean are transported from the Sargasso Sea, such as the quintessential S. natans I (SnI) and widespread S. fluitans III (SfIII; Gower and King 2011, Schell et al. 2015). Reliable taxonomic identification of Sargassum in the field (land or sea) is crucial to indicate the seaweeds predicted source region and forecasted movement, as emphasized by inundation events within the last decade.