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PHANG et al (2007)
of Phaeophyta and 16 species of Chlorophyta recorded by Ahmad Ismail (1995), Ajisaka
(2002), Ajisaka et al. (1999) and Lim et al. (2001). In 2004, two new records of Gracilaria,
Gracilaria articulata and G. manilaensis (Lim & Phang 2004) and 13 new records of Sargassum
(Wong & Phang 2004), were published. Two expeditions to the northeast Langkawi resulted
in a checklist for Langkawi Islands with 84 taxa identified (Phang et al. 2005). The seaweed
flora of Langkawi is quite distinct from that of Peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia. At the
species level, the Sorenson’s Coefficient of Similarity (S) between flora of Langkawi and
west coast Peninsula Malaysia is 35.21%, although at the genus level, the S= 66.22%. The
tally of Malaysian marine algae now stands at 388 specific and infraspecific taxa (17 taxa of
Cyanophyta, 102 Chlorophyta, 182 Rhodophyta and 87 Phaeophyta) (Phang 2006). Table 1
gives the checklist of Malaysian marine algae. Most of the specimens are deposited at the
Seaweeds and Seagrasses Herbarium established at the Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty
of Science, University of Malaya, which presently houses more than 7000 numbers of herbarium
specimens collected from Malaysia, and the Herbarium of the Graduate School of Science,
Hokkaido University, Japan.
Of the marine blue-green algae or Cyanophyta, species of Oscillatoria and Lyngbya dominate
the mudflats while Brachytrichia grow abundantly over intertidal rocks and the sandy seabed.
The Chlorophyta consists of the second highest number of taxa in Malaysian waters. Twelve
species of Caulerpa have been recorded, mainly in coral reefs. Recent collections indicate
that eight of these, namely C. lentillifera, C. peltata, C. racemosa, C. scalpelliformis, C.
serrulata, C. sertulariodes, C. taxifolia and C. verticillata are still commonly found. The
coral reefs are also dominated by species of Halimeda (H. discoidea, H. opuntia, H. tuna), the
erect coralline algae which contribute towards reef building with the calcium carbonate retained
in their cell walls. Several species of Enteromorpha and Ulva are found in the nutrient-rich
shores and mudflats. Enteromorpha intestinalis, E. chlathrata, Ulva lactuca and U. fasciata
are commonly seen covering small rocks, stones, driftwood and sandy patches along beaches.
Many of these species are eaten by the coastal communities of the region.
The red seaweeds or Rhodophyta comprise the highest number of taxa. Species of Halymenia
dominate the subtidal bedrock areas, while Laurencia and Hypnea species inhabit the bedrocks
at the intertidal regions. These grow mainly in the cleaner deep waters. Four species of
Eucheuma and two species of Kappaphycus, sources of carrageenan, have been collected
from lower intertidal to upper sub-tidal areas in Sabah and around islands in Peninsular
Malaysia. Except for the cultivated Kappaphycus, many of the Eucheuma species seem to
have disappeared from Peninsular Malaysia. Twenty-two species of the agarophytic genus
Gracilaria have been reported, many of which inhabit mangroves, sandy-mudflats and rocky
shores. Erect coralline (Amphiroa, Jania) as well as crustose coralline (Lithothamnion,
Peyssonnelia) Rhodophytes are commonly found in the coral reefs especially in the cleaner
deep waters around the islands. In the mangroves small tufted thalli of Bostrychia, Laurencia
microcladia, Caloglossa adnata, Catenella grow commonly with the green filaments of
Chaetomorpha linum and Cladophora. Common epiphytic taxa include Champia parvula,
Centroceras, Ceramium, Spyridia, Polysiphonia, Heterosiphonia, Herposiphonia and
Tolypiocladia glomerulata (Phang 1989). Thirty-eight new records including one new species,
were reported from the Malaysian-Japanese collaboration from 1995.
The brown seaweeds or Phaeophyta contribute high algal biomass (Phang & Maheswary 1989)
on reefs. While Sargassum and Dictyota dominate in terms of species number, Padina are the
most frequently found species. They inhabit a variety of substratum including mangroves,
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