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G RACILARIA VERMICULOPHYLLA (RHODOPHYTA, GRACILARIALES) IN THE VIRGINIA COASTAL BAYS, USA: COX 1 ANALYSIS REVEALS HIGH GENETIC RICHNESS OF AN INTRODUCED MACROALGA
Author(s) -
Gulbransen Dana J.,
McGlathery Karen J.,
Marklund Maria,
Norris James N.,
Gurgel Carlos Frederico D.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of phycology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.85
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1529-8817
pISSN - 0022-3646
DOI - 10.1111/j.1529-8817.2012.01218.x
Subject(s) - species richness , biology , estuary , intraspecific competition , invasive species , introduced species , genetic diversity , ecology , population , demography , sociology
G racilaria vermiculophylla (Ohmi) Papenfuss is an invasive alga that is native to S outheast A sia and has invaded many estuaries in N orth A merica and E urope. It is difficult to differentiate G . vermiculophylla from native forms using morphology and therefore molecular techniques are needed. In this study, we used three molecular markers ( rbc L, cox 2‐ cox 3 spacer, cox 1) to identify G . vermiculophylla at several locations in the western A tlantic. Rbc L and cox 2‐ cox 3 spacer markers confirmed the presence of G . vermiculophylla on the east coast of the USA from M assachusetts to S outh C arolina. We used a 507 base pair region of cox 1 mt DNA to (i) verify the widespread distribution of G . vermiculophylla in the V irginia ( VA ) coastal bays and (ii) determine the intraspecific diversity of these algae. Cox 1 haplotype richness in the VA coastal bays was much higher than that previously found in other invaded locations, as well as some native locations. This difference is likely attributed to the more intensive sampling design used in this study, which was able to detect richness created by multiple, diverse introductions. On the basis of our results, we recommend that future studies take differences in sampling design into account when comparing haplotype richness and diversity between native and non‐native studies in the literature.