Small-scale spatial and temporal reproductive variability of the brown macroalga Sargassum thunbergii in contrasting habitats: A study on the island of Xiaoheishan, Changdao Archipelago, China

A study of the reproductive pattern of Sargassum thunbergii, which is distributed widely around the island of Xiaoheishan (Changdao Archipelago, China), shows that it exhibits a flexibility to adapt to contrasting habitats. Populations of S. thunbergii from two depths at nine field sites exposed to increasing degrees of wave action were studied to determine their spatio-temporal variations in reproductive pattern. The start of the reproductive period was significantly delayed with increasing geographical latitude but independent of depth and wave exposure, and seawater temperature was found to be a significant controlling factor for maturation. In contrast with reproductive onset, two-way ANCOVA showed that there were significant effects of both depth and wave exposure on the peak and end point of the reproductive period. The latter were significantly delayed in the semi-exposed deep-water habitats compared to sheltered shallow-water habitats. The shortest duration of the reproductive period was recorded in the wave-exposed shallow-water habitats, while the longest duration was in the semi-exposed deep-water habitats. In addition, reproductive allocation (RA) in the studied populations showed a similar and significant temporal variation during reproduction, and RA increased as time progressed, followed by a rapid decrease in late summer. Wave exposure as well as depth also influenced significantly the RA whereby thalli from exposed and semi-exposed deep-water habitats allocated significantly more biomass to the production of receptacles than did thalli from sheltered shallow-water habitats.

► We detected spatial variation in reproductive onset, peak and end of S. thunbergii.
► Onset of reproduction showed a significant correlation with increasing latitude.
► Both wave exposure and depth affected significantly reproductive allocation (RA).
► Earlier onset, longer duration, later peak and lower RA occurred simultaneously.
► Reproductive pattern of S. thunbergii population exhibits flexibility.