Abstract
AbstractSargassum is one of the morphologically most complex phaeophyceaen genera, and is divided into subgenera, sections, subsections, series and species groups based on highly polymorphic characters. Recent DNA analyses have highlighted incongruities in the traditional classification of the genus and especially within Sargassum subg. Sargassum sect. Acanthocarpicae. Our goal was to re–assess the relationships among taxa currently attributed to this section in the Pacific basin. We undertook the taxonomic study in two main steps: (1) the morphological examination of large collections from inter–tropical Pacific islands and type specimens from worldwide localities; and (2) DNA analyses using a set of three markers (ITS–2, partial rbcLS–operon, cox3). Morphological and DNA analyses confirmed that S. sect. Acanthocarpicae is based on unsuitable morphological characters and is not monophyletic. On the basis of this study, we propose (1) abandoning subsections within S. sect. Acanthocarpicae; (2) synonymization of S. sect. Acanthocarpicae and sect. Malacocarpicae with sect. Sargassum; and (3) the elevation of S. ser. Ilicifoliae and ser. Binderianae to sectional rank as well as their re–description according to new sets of morphological characters.
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