Zonación del fitobentos en el litoral noroeste de La Palma (Islas Canarias)
- San Gil Hernández, Carlos Alberto
- Afonso Carrillo, Julio Manuel
- Sansón Acedo, Marta
ISSN: 1130-4723
Year of publication: 2004
Volume: 16
Issue: 4
Pages: 75-90
Type: Article
More publications in: Revista de la Academia Canaria de Ciencias: = Folia Canariensis Academiae Scientiarum
Abstract
The zonation in five localities of the Northwest coast of the island of La Palma is presented, showing the following characteristics: cianophytes and litorinids, and barnacles, characterize the littoral fringe and the upper eulittoral, respectively; whereas crustose brown algae and small turfs of rhodophytes dominate in the middle eulittoral. In the lower eulittoral, geniculate coralline algae are dominant, but turfs of Laurencia and Chondrophycus replace them, when the degree of wave exposition increases. Geniculate corallines and Dictyotales mainly occupy the shallow sublittoral, whereas Cystoseira abies-marina is rele- gated to the more exposed rocks. Populations of seasonal rhodophytes are frequent on rocks influenced by the sand. Below 15 m depth bare substrata oi Diadema antillarum ('blanquizales') and sand beds are dominant.