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Ecological Observations on a Branched, Loose-lying Form of Macrocystis pyrifera (L.) C. Agardh in New Zealand

A loose-lying form of Macrocystis pyrifera (L.) C. Agardh, consisting of branched fronds with no basal meristems or holdfasts, occurs in the sheltered bays of Paterson Inlet, Stewart Island, New Zealand. We found the loose-lying fronds distributed in clumps on the soft mud bottom, with greatest concentrations at 3—6 m depth. Individual fronds averaged 160 cm in their longest axis and had up to 7 branching points and 8 apical meristems. Unusually small pneumatocysts provided buoyancy sufficient to suspend the apical portions of a frond above the substratum but not sufficient to float the entire frond. Apical growth averaged l cm day' during February, 1983. The combined processes of apical growth, branching, and basal decomposition probably result in vegetative reproduction of the fronds by fragmentation, which may account for their clumped distnbution. Terminal blades (inactive apical meristems) did not occur among the branched fronds, suggesting that they may be long-Iived. Typical M. pyrifera plants with unbranched fronds were attached to shallow subtidal and intertidal rocks fringing the sheltered bays. Large fronds removed from attached plants were negatively buoyant and may have been the source population for the branched form.