Udotea conglutinata (J. Ellis & Solander) J.V. Lamouroux 1816: 312

Acosta-Calderón, Julio Adulfo, Hernández-Rodríguez, César, Mendoza-González, Ángela Catalina & Mateo-Cid, Luz Elena, 2018, Diversity and distribution of Udotea genus J. V. Lamouroux (Chlorophyta, Udoteaceae) in the Yucatan peninsula littoral, Mexico, Phytotaxa 345 (3), pp. 179-218 : 192-194

Udotea conglutinata (J. Ellis & Solander) J.V. Lamouroux 1816: 312

Basionym: Corallina conglutinata J. Ellis & Solander 1786: 125

Type Locality:— BELIZE. Northwest side of Tobacco Range.

Morphology: — Thalli to 4 cm tall, anchored to the substrata by a small fibrous rhizoidal mass. Stipe cylindrical 3–15 mm length, 1–3 mm diameter, and flattening towards the blade. Gradual transition between the stipe and blade. Blade fan-shaped, olive green, longer (1.5–3 cm) than wider (1.4–3 cm), lower margin ovate, truncate or cordate, multistratose, ecorticate, zonate, and heavy calcified except in superior margin ( Figs. 16, 17, 18 ).

Anatomy: — Blade siphons without lateral appendages, dichotomously branched, 27–40 μm in diameter, with apices distinct torulous and contorted ( Fig. 19 ). Distance between each dichotomy varies from 500 to 900 μm, supradichotomic constrictions 19–29 μm length, 8–11 μm in diameter ( Fig. 20 ). Stipe siphons adjacent to lateral appendages 30–55 μm in diameter, appendages peduncle 115–250 μm length, 25–45 μm in diameter. Appendages dichotomously branched 2–3 times, and ending in dichotomies ( Fig. 21 ).

Reproduction: — Vegetative

Material examined:— MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Punta Piedra, 17 December 2014, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 23119. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Punta Rio Bermejo, 12 April 2015, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 23115. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Isla Mujeres, 16 June 2014, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 23117. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Punta Mahahual, 20 December 2014, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 23114. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Punta Akumal, 15 April 2015, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 23113. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Pulticub, 14 April 2015, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 23116. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Puerto Morelos, 15 June 2014, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 23118. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Pulticub, 14 September 2012, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 20855. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Cayo Valencia, 18 January 2011, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, J. A. Acosta Calderón, ENCB 19840. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Playa Lancheros, Isla Mujeres, 1 November 1984, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González, ENCB 6125. MEXICO. Quintana Roo, Puerto Morelos, 21 May 1993, L. E. Mateo Cid, A. C. Mendoza González ENCB 17218. MEXICO. Campeche, Lerma, 21 January 1966, A. Vargas, ENCB 16774.

Geographic distribution: — Bahamas, Bermuda, Florida, Panama, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Virgin Islands, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Indonesia, Mexico.

Habitat: — Calcareous rock and rocky platforms with soft waves. Subtidal to 4 m depth.

Comments: — The first morphological description of this species was made by J. Ellis & Solander (1786), as Corallina conglutinata . Later, J. V Lamouroux (1816) made the change from C. conglutinata to Udotea conglutinata . These descriptions were made with specimens from the Bahamas and mentioned a fibrous root, a simple stem and a fan shaped, made up of dichotomous branches covered by a calcareous substance. Howe (1909) and Taylor (1960) presented more detailed descriptions of the morphology of the blade and stipe; the lateral appendages of the stipe siphons also provide information about the diameter of the blade siphons. In the work of Littler & Littler (1990) more precise description and illustrations are presented about the shape of the apices of the blade siphons and the lateral appendages of the stipe siphons. The shape of the tips of the blade siphons is distinctive in this species. The shape and dimensions of the stipe appendages correspond to those registered for specimens from Bahamas, Florida and Puerto Rico ( Howe 1909, Taylor 1960, Littler & Littler 1990), and the Mexican Caribbean ( Collado-Vides et al. 2009). Regarding the dimensions of the blade and stipe siphons, the thalli examined show dimensions smaller than those recorded in specimens from Bahamas, Florida, Jamaica ( Howe 1909, Taylor 1960) and Belize ( Littler & Littler 1990), but coincide with those recorded in thalli from Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo, Mexico ( Collado-Vides et al. 2009). The wide distribution of this species is confirmed in the Quintana Roo littoral, although no specimens were found in Dzilam de Bravo, Yucatan, as mentioned by Rosado-Espinosa et al. (2011), as well as in Lerma, Campeche ( Mateo-Cid et al. 2013).

Figures

FIGURES 16–21. U. conglutinata. 16–18) external morphology, 19) blade siphon showing the torulous apices, 20) detail of the supradichotomic constriction, 21) stipe lateral appendages. FIGURES 22–24. U. cyathiformis. 22) external morphology, 23) blade siphon apices, 24) lateral appendages of the stipe.