Abstract
The present paper presents the first population data for the Southern Hemisphere of the rare seagrass Halophila baillonis. The population studied is located in a calm, reef-protected area at depths ≤ 5 m, covering 12,000 m2 (400 m long by 30 m wide, oriented parallel to the coastline). The population generally demonstrated low shoot density and biomass during the rainy season, with significant differences between seasons, being found only for aboveground biomass. Despite the identification of this new population, the species continues to be considered rare along the Brazilian coast.
Highlights
The seagrass Halophila baillonis Ascherson is considered a vulnerable species according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) (Short et al 2010) as it is rare in nature and, when encountered, occurs only in fragmented populations
The distribution range of H. baillonis is restricted to the Tropical Atlantic region (Short et al 2007), with recorded occurrences only in approximately eight localities in the Caribbean (Short et al 2010) and one along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica (SamperVillarreal et al 2014), with historical records in Brazil and Costa Rica (Pacific coast)
Ecological information about this species is limited to its distribution in the western Caribbean area (Short et al 2006) and its association with other seagrass meadows (Cortes 2001), as well as a characterization of seagrass meadows and the associated benthic macrofauna on the southern Pacific coast of Costa Rica (Samper-Villarreal et al 2014)
Summary
The seagrass Halophila baillonis Ascherson is considered a vulnerable species according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) (Short et al 2010) as it is rare in nature and, when encountered, occurs only in fragmented populations. The distribution range of H. baillonis is restricted to the Tropical Atlantic region (Short et al 2007), with recorded occurrences only in approximately eight localities in the Caribbean (Short et al 2010) and one along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica (SamperVillarreal et al 2014), with historical records in Brazil (den Hartog 1970, 1972, Oliveira-Filho et al 1983) and Costa Rica (Pacific coast) The only two previous records of this species in Brazil were provided by Setchell (1934) based on material collected in 1888 at the Itamaracá Island in the state of Pernambuco (den Hartog 1970, 1972) and by Oliveira-Filho et al (1983), citing a single specimen (without flowers or fruits) collected near Recife, in the state of Pernambuco State.
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