Abstract

The authors report the geographical distribution, habitat and reproductive phenology of the four species of the genus Kallymenia from Catalonia, Spain: K. feldmannii Codomier, K. lacerata J. Feldmann, K. patens (J. Agardh) Parkinson and K. requienii J. Agardh. The records confirm that these species are quite common in the western Mediterranean Sea, but are very rare in the eastern Mediterranean region, where only K. lacerata and K. requienii have been found once. In addition, the examination of different herbaria shows that K. requienii is present on the Atlantic coast of the north of Spain. The four species are sciophilous and live preferably in the coralligen or in the maerl, usually at depths of more than 30 m in the northernMediterranean Sea or below 40 m in the central and southern Mediterranean Sea. All species are highly proterandrous. Kallymenia feldmannii and K. lacerata are annual and ensure survival in winter by developing incrusting discs from carpospores and tetraspores. Kallymenia patens and K. requienii are perennial, and ensure survival by maintaining only the basal part of the blade from one year to the other and developing new blades from it in spring. The perennial species, on aging, accumulate floridean starch in the intermediate cortical layers, which takes the form of whitish spots on the blade surface; the older thalli are totally whitish.