DIFFERENCES IN LIFE‐HISTORY CHARACTERISTICS ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE VERTICAL DISTRIBUTION PATTERN OF FUCUS SERRATUS AND FUCUS VESICULOSUS (FUCALES, PHAEOPHYCEAE) IN THE CENTRAL BALTIC SEA

Abstract

On the rocky shores of southeast Sweden, in the central Baltic Sea, the brown seaweed species Fucus serratus L. and Fucus vesiculosus L. form dense constantly submerged stands. The relative proportion of the two species in the belt is shifting both vertically and geographically. Our hypothesis is that differences in life‐history characteristics and the tolerance to physical factors such as wave force, freezing, and light may alter the competitive outcome between the two species with increasing wave exposure. This study included a combination of field studies and laboratory experiments. In sheltered locations, F. serratus and F. vesiculosus grow in mixed stands from 0.5 to 3 m deep, whereas at exposed sites F. vesiculosus grow from 0.5 to 2 m deep and F. serratus mainly from 1 to 5 m deep. The two Fucus species differed markedly in their tolerance to physical stress as well as in a number of reproductive and vegetative characteristics. Tolerance to freezing and wave action was higher in F. vesiculosus compared with F. serratus. Fucus vesiculosus also produced 10 times more eggs per receptacle, allocated significantly more tissue per frond for reproduction, and produced more reproductive fronds per individual than did F. serratus. In addition, the survival rate of F. vesiculosus germlings was slightly higher than that of F. serratus germlings during the first year. These differences in life history characteristics are suggested to partly explain the observed distribution patterns of the two Fucus species in the Baltic Sea.