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New record of the green macroalga Gayralia brasiliensis (Ulotrichales, Chlorophyta) in Singapore

  • Yu Fei Ng

    Yu Fei Ng is a student researcher from the National University of Singapore. His recent research focuses on the taxonomy and phylogeny of macroalgae.

     ORCID logo EMAIL logo     , Regina Shu Wen Yeo

    Regina Shu Wen Yeo is a PhD student with Kyushu University, researching on the taxonomy, phylogeny, and biogeography of seaweeds, with special focus on Southeast Asian seaweeds. She is also a trained taxonomist and uses a combination of classical and molecular techniques to identify seaweeds.

         and Danwei Huang

    Danwei Huang is Associate Professor at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, National University of Singapore. His research focuses on the ecology, evolution and conservation of coral reefs.
Published/Copyright: July 3, 2024
Botanica Marina
From the journal Botanica Marina Volume 67 Issue 4

Abstract

A new family, genus, and species record, Gayralia brasiliensis (Gayraliaceae, Ulotrichales, Chlorophyta) is reported in Singapore using chloroplast elongation factor Tu (tufA) and nuclear internal transcribed spacer (ITS) markers alongside gross and microscopic examination. This species was likely missed by previous surveys due to its limited local distribution, superficial similarity to the much more common Ulva, and its small size. Morphologically, G. brasiliensis in Singapore is more similar to G. oxysperma than to G. brasiliensis in Brazil. This study demonstrates the importance of integrative molecular and morphological analysis for characterising macroalgal diversity.

Keywords: Gayraliaceae; phylogenetics; marine biodiversity; macroalgal taxonomy; Singapore
Corresponding author: Yu Fei Ng, Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117558, Singapore, E-mail:

Funding source: Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, National University of Singapore

Funding source: Temasek

About the authors

Yu Fei Ng

Yu Fei Ng is a student researcher from the National University of Singapore. His recent research focuses on the taxonomy and phylogeny of macroalgae.

Regina Shu Wen Yeo

Regina Shu Wen Yeo is a PhD student with Kyushu University, researching on the taxonomy, phylogeny, and biogeography of seaweeds, with special focus on Southeast Asian seaweeds. She is also a trained taxonomist and uses a combination of classical and molecular techniques to identify seaweeds.

Danwei Huang

Danwei Huang is Associate Professor at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, National University of Singapore. His research focuses on the ecology, evolution and conservation of coral reefs.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Xavier Wong and Nicholas Yap for providing assistance during our field trips.

  1. Research ethics: This research was conducted with permission from National Parks Board under permit NP/RP20-096.

  2. Author contributions: The authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this submitted manuscript and approved submission. Yu Fei Ng: conceptualization, sample collection, manuscript writing and morphological and molecular analyses; Regina Shu Wen Yeo: morphological and molecular analyses; Danwei Huang: funding acquisition, conceptualization and manuscript writing.

  3. Competing interests: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest regarding this article.

  4. Research funding: This research is supported by Temasek and the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, National University of Singapore.

  5. Data availability: The raw data can be obtained on request from the corresponding author.

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Supplementary Material

This article contains supplementary material (https://doi.org/10.1515/bot-2024-0014).

Received: 2023-03-28
Accepted: 2024-05-31
Published Online: 2024-07-03
Published in Print: 2024-08-27

© 2024 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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https://doi.org/10.1515/bot-2024-0014
Keywords for this article
Gayraliaceae; phylogenetics; marine biodiversity; macroalgal taxonomy; Singapore

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. In this issue
  3. Physiology and Ecology
  4. Gambierdiscus carpenteri (Dinophyceae) from Bahía de La Paz, Gulf of California: morphology, genetic affinities, and mouse toxicity
  5. New record of the green macroalga Gayralia brasiliensis (Ulotrichales, Chlorophyta) in Singapore
  6. Taxonomy/Phylogeny and Biogeography
  7. Three new Lobophora species (Dictyotales, Phaeophyceae) from Phuket on the west coast of Thailand
  8. Proposal of Cryptonemia floridana comb. nov. (Halymeniaceae, Rhodophyta) based on rbcL gene analysis of collections from type locality and female reproductive morphology
  9. Kapraunia silviae (Rhodomelaceae, Rhodophyta), a new species from the South Atlantic Ocean
  10. Pseudogomphonema lukinicum sp. nov. (Bacillariophyceae), a new endophytic diatom found inside multicellular red algae from the Northwest Pacific
  11. Morphology and molecular phylogeny of Gonyaulax kunsanensis sp. nov. (Gonyaulacales, Dinophyceae) from Korean coastal waters
  12. Introducing a new species, Vaginatispora acrostichi (Lophiostomataceae), based on morphology and multigene phylogeny
  13. Genomics
  14. Evaluation of cryptic invasion in Japanese Undaria populations based on mitochondrial haplotypic analysis
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