BIOGEOGRAPHY OF MARINE RED ALGAE: MYTHS AND REALITIES

Hommersand, M. H. Department of Biology, Coker Hall, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599‐3280 USA Theories about the geographical distribution of marine algae fall roughly into two categories: (1) a concept of biogeographical regions in which algal distribution is determined primarily by growth, reproductive and lethal temperature boundaries (Setchell, van den Hoek, Breeman, Lüning) and (2) an historical perspective in which distribution is determined primarily by patterns of dispersal and the establishment of barriers to dispersal (vicariance biogeography) (Svedelius, Garbary, Lindstrom, Hommersand). Setchell proposed the 5° isotherm rule in 1920, and in 1924 Svedelius advocated a worldwide distribution for tropical and subtropical groups followed by discontinuous distribution upon closure of the connection between the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea and, later, between North and South America (Wegener's theory). Transarctic dispersal routes have received special attention in recent years (Lindstrom, Lüning, van Oppen, Olsen, Stam), as have special relationships between Australasia, South Africa and South America (Hommersand). Less well understood are the climatic changes that have taken place in the Cenozoic which are strategic to an understanding vicariant biogeography. The advent of molecular methods combined with the tools of phylogenetic systematics now make it possible to identify ancestral taxa, test the consistency of tree topologies, and calculate mean branch lengths between sister lineages diverging from an interior node of a tree. With such methods it may be possible to infer ancestral areas, identify dispersal pathways, determine the chronology of isolating events, assess the impact of multiple invasions, and generally relate dispersal and vicariance models to phylogenetic hypotheses for red, brown and green algal taxa.