- Source: Halimeda kanaloana
Halimeda Kanaloana is a species of green algae (class Ulvophyceae) in the family Halimedaceae. This Species is endemic to the Maui Nui island complex (Molokai, Maui, Lanai, Oahu, and Kahoolawe islands.)
= Description
=Halimeda kanaloana is characterized by a large, bulbous holdfast that anchors the specimen in sand. The basal thallus region consists of massive cylindrical to slightly flattened segments. In the central and distal regions of the thallus, the segments are large, obovoid to cuneate, and trilobed, with a median length of 9-14 mm, a width of 6-11 mm, and a thickness of 1.5-2.9 mm. The medullar siphons fuse into a single unit at the segment nodes, and pores are visible connecting neighboring siphons. The median pore height, including cell walls, is 47-69 µm. The plant has 4-5 layers of utricles, with large peripheral utricles measuring 56-73 µm in diameter and 69-98 µm in height. These utricles reach 42% of their maximal width at a quarter of their height and have angular corners in surface view. The subperipheral utricles are markedly inflated.
= Distribution
=The overall Geographic range of Halimeda Kanaloana is narrow, spanning in a few islands across Hawaii. It is endemic to the Maui Nui island complex or the islands of Molokai, Maui, Lanai, Oahu, and Kahoolawe.
= Habitat
=Halimeda kanaloana can be found in meadow in sandy environments. Occasional individuals are found as shallow as 1–2 m, with dense stands beginning at 15 m and ending abruptly around 85 m. Specimens are anchored in sand by means of a gritty, bulbous anchoring holdfast, up to 8 cm in length, which the rhizoids cling tightly to sand. Very rarely, specimens are found attached to rock.
References
Verbruggen, H., De Clerck, O., N’yeurt, A. D. R., Spalding, H., & Vroom, P. S. (2006). Phylogeny and taxonomy of Halimeda incrassata , including descriptions of H. kanaloana and H. heteromorpha spp. nov. (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta). European Journal of Phycology, 41(3), 337–362. https://doi.org/10.1080/09670260600709315
Langston RC, Spalding HL. 2017. A survey of fishes associated with Hawaiian deep-water Halimeda kanaloana (Bryopsidales: Halimedaceae) and Avrainvillea sp. (Bryopsidales: Udoteaceae) meadows. PeerJ 5:e3307 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3307
Verbruggen, H., De Clerck, O., N'Yeurt, A. D., Spalding, H., & Vroom, P. S. (2005). description of H. kanaloanaand H. heteromorphaspp. nov. Resegmenting Halimeda, 155.
Spalding, H. L. (2012). Ecology of mesophotic macroalgae and Halimeda kanaloana meadows in the Main Hawaiian Islands (Doctoral dissertation, [Honolulu]:[University of Hawaii at Manoa],[August 2012]).
Kuba, G. M., Spalding, H. L., Hill-Spanik, K. M., Williams, T. M., Paiano, M. O., Sherwood, A. R., ... & Fullerton, H. (2023). Characterization of macroalgal-associated microbial communities from shallow to mesophotic depths at Manawai, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, Hawai ‘i. PeerJ, 11, e16114.
Yamase, N. H. (2022). Studying the Ecophysiological Responses of Native Hawaiian Macroalgae in a Changing World (Doctoral dissertation, University of Hawai'i at Manoa).
Fukunaga, A. (2008). Invertebrate community associated with the macroalga Halimeda kanaloana meadow in Maui, Hawaii. International review of hydrobiology, 93(3), 328-341.
