MOLECULAR AND MORPHOLOGICAL IDENTIFICATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF CYSTOSEIRA C. AGARDH, 1820 SPECIES IN NORTHERN MEDITERRANEAN COASTS OF TURKEY

WOS: 000439087100003The brown algae species, Cystoseira spp., forms an important habitat for many marine species. Changes in ecological conditions as salinity, seawater temperature and other factors such as urbanization, costal development, domestic and chemical pollutions effect the distribution and existence of these species. To protect and maintain their existence it is needed to identify and monitor Cystoseira spp. accurately. For this reason the distribution of the Cystoseira species in Northern Aegean Turkish Coasts were compared with previous data. The species were identified by both morphologically and phylogenetically. 35 Cystoseira samples were collected from 20 stations. Morphological features were used to identify 29 samples out of 35. From these species 10 of them gave appropriate results with sequence analysis. The genus Cystoseira has been identified as a potential indicator of water quality in Mediterranean waters, and our preliminary results suggest that Cystoseira species may also be good bioindicators for ecological conditions.Ege University, Faculty of Science, Scientific Research Project [2007/FEN/025]This study was funded by Ege University, Faculty of Science, Scientific Research Project # 2007/FEN/025