Filamentous Brown Algae from the Juan Fernandez Archipelago (Chile): Contribution of Laboratory Culture Techniques to a Phytogeographic Survey

The marine benthic floras of many remote localities are poorly studied. Sampling, during a short visit, followed by laboratory culture techniques can be employed to extend the flora lists. Islas Robinson Crusoe and Santa Clara off the coast of central Chile were visited for 10 days in 1991. Small fragments of benthic and sublittoral algae and various substrates were collected and subsequently incubated in the laboratory. The developing ectocarpoid algae were used to establish unialgal cultures. Morphological characters were well expressed, and the following species could be identified and correlated with the taxa reported by Levring in 1941: Ectocarpus fasciculatus, Feldmannia simplex (= Ectocarpus cylindricus Saunders), Hincksia granulosa, H. mitchelliae, H. conifera, (= Ectocarpus arabicus Figari et De Notaris) and Kuetzingiella battersii (= Ectocarpus minutissimus Levring). Feldmannia irregularis, F globifer, Hincksia sandriana, Kuckuckia kylinii and Leptonematella fasciculata are new records for South America. While most of the taxa have wide distributions in cold- and warm-temperate climates, Kuckuckia and Kuetzingiella were previously considered as representatives of the warm temperate North Atlantic flora.