Abstract
Photoperiodic control of tetrasporangium formation was studied in two low intertidal populations of Bonnemaisonia hamifera (Trailliella-phase) in Galway Bay, Ireland between September 1985 and February 1986. Photoperiodic induction was affected by tides, principally by the time of day at which high and low water occurred through the spring/neap cycle. High water of spring tides falling at the beginning and end of the day reduced the “effective” daylength for plants, and caused an early onset of reproduction. The threshold irradiance signalling light-dark transition was estimated to lie between (1-) 5 and 10 μmol photons m-2 s-1 (400 to 700 nm). Low water of spring tides falling in the middle of the day exposed plants to high air temperatures during periods when seawater temperatures were below the lower limit for sporangium induction. This caused reproduction to be resumed. Quantitative differences between the two populations were caused by microclimatic effects (temperature, light reduction during tidal flooding) resulting from their different vertical heights on the shore.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Bailey, N. T. J. (1981). Statistical methods in biology. Hodder and Stoughton, London
Breeman, A. M. (1988). Relative importance of temperature and other factors in determining geographic boundaries of seaweeds: experimental and phenological evidence. Helgoländer Meeresunters. 42: 199–241
Breeman, A. M., Bos, S., Essen, S. van, Mulekom, L. L. van (1984). Light-dark regimes in the intertidal zone and tetrasporangial periodicity in the red alga Rhodochorton purpureum (Lightf.) Rosenv. Helgoländer Meeresunters. 37: 365–387
Breeman, A. M., Hoopen, A. ten (1981). Ecology and distribution of the subtidal red alga Acrosymphyton purpuriferum (J. Ag.) Sjöst. (Rhodophyceae, Cryptonemiales). Aquat. Bot. 11: 143–166
Breeman, A. M., Hoopen, A. ten (1987). The mechanism of day-length perception in the red alga Acrosymphyton purpuriferum. J. Phycol. 23: 36–42
Breeman, A. M., Meulenhoff, E. J. S., Guiry, M. D (1989). Life history regulation and phenology of the red alga Bonnemaisonia hamifera. Helgoländer Meeresunters. 43
Chen, L. C.-M., Edelstein, T., McLachlan, J. (1969). Bonnemaisonia hamifera in nature and in culture. J. Phycol. 5: 211–220
Dring, M. J. (1984). Photoperiodism and phycology. In: Round, F., Chapman, D. J. (eds.) Progress in phycological research. Vol. 3. Biopress Ltd., Bristol, p. 159–192
Dring, M. J. (1987). Light climate in intertidal and subtidal zones in relation to photosynthesis and growth of benthic algae: a theoretical model. In: Crawford, R. M. M. (ed.) Plant life in aquatic and amphibious environments. Blackwell, Oxford, p. 359–373
Guiry, M. D., Cunningham, E. M. (1984). Photoperiodic and temperature responses in the reproduction of north eastern Atlantic Gigartina acicularis (Rhodophyta: Gigartinales). Phycologia 23: 357–367
Hoopen, A. ten, Bos, S., Breeman, A. M. (1983). Photoperiodic response in the formation of gametangia in the long day plant Sphacelaria rigidula (Phaeophyceae). Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 13: 285–289
Holmes, R. W. (1957). Solar radiation, submarine daylight, and photosynthesis. In: Hedgpeth, G. (ed.) Treatise on marine ecology and paleoecology, Vol. 1. Geol. Soc. Amer. Mem. 67: 109–128
Hughes, J. E., Morgan, D. C., Lambton, P. A., Black, C. R., Smith, H. (1984). Photoperiodic time signals during twilight. Pl. Cell Envir. 7: 269–277
Jerlov, N. G. (1976). Marine optics. Elsevier, Amsterdam
Jerlov, N. G. (1977). Classification of seawater in terms of quanta irradiance. J. Cons. int. Explor. Mer 37: 281–287
Kirk, J. T. O. (1983). Light and photosynthesis in aquatic ecosystems. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Klein, B. (1987). The phenology of Dumontia contorta (Rhodophyta) studied by following individual plants in situ at Roscoff, Northern Brittany. Botanica mar. 30: 187–194
Lüning, K. (1980). Control of algal life-history by daylength and temperature. In: Price, J. H., Irvine, D. E. G., Farnham, W. F. (eds.) The shore environment, Vol. 2: Ecosystems. Academic Press, London, p. 915–945
Lüning, K. (1981 a). Photomorphogenesis of reproduction in marine macroalgae. Ber. dt. bot. Ges. 94: 401–417
Lünick, K. (1981 b). Light. In: Lobban, C. S., Wynne, M. J. (eds.) The biology of seaweeds. Blackwell, Oxford, p. 326–355
Lüning, K. (1985). Meeresbotanik. Thieme Verlag, Stuttgart
Salisbury, F. B. (1981). Twilight effect: initiating dark measurement in photoperiodism of Xanthium. Pl. Physiol., Wash. 67: 1230–1238
Smith, H., Morgan, D. C. (1983). The function of phytochrome in nature. In: Shropshire, W., Mohr, H. (eds.) Encyclopedia of plant physiology, Vol. 16B, Photomorphogenesis. Springer, Heidelberg, p. 491–517
Sokal, R. R., Rohlf, F. J. (1973). Introduction to biostatistics. Freeman Co., San Francisco
Vince-Prue, D. (1975). Photoperiodism in plants. McGraw-Hill, London
Vince-Prue, D. (1983). The perception of light-dark transitions. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. (Ser. B) 303: 523–536
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by O. Kinne, Oldendorf/Luhe
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Breeman, A.M., Guiry, M.D. Tidal influences on the photoperiodic induction of tetrasporogenesis in Bonnemaisonia hamifera (Rhodophyta). Marine Biology 102, 5–14 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00391318
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00391318