Sargassum fluitans is a species of brown algae in the family Sargassaceae, first described by Danish botanist Frederik Børgesen in 1914. In English, it is sometimes referred to as broad-leaved gulfweed.
Ecology
It occurs in the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean, including the Sargasso Sea.U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). "Basic Information on Sargassum." https://www.epa.gov/cyanohabs/basic-information-sargassum It is a holopelagic species, living entirely in the open ocean as floating mats.Gower, J., King, S., & Zheng, G. (2006). Global monitoring of floating Sargassum using MODIS satellite data. Remote Sensing of Environment, 104(4), 338–349. Like other pelagic Sargassum species, it reproduces primarily by fragmentation.Gower, J., Young, E., & King, S. (2013). Sargassum ecology and reproduction in the North Atlantic. Deep-Sea Research II, 93, 2–11. It, along with Sargassum natans, have been credited with negatively affecting the beach tourism industry in Yucatán and South Florida. This species serves as a floating substrate for a diverse community of epibiotic organisms, including colonial hydrozoans and other invertebrates.Lapointe, B.E. et al. (2014). The Sargasso Sea ecosystem. Deep-Sea Research II, 93, 1–2.
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