Effect of abiotic environment on the distribution of the attached and drifting red algae Furcellaria lumbricalis in the Estonian coastal sea

Abstract

Biomass distribution patterns of attached and drifting forms of Furcellaria lumbricalis in the whole Estonian coastal sea including the Gulf of Riga, the West Estonian Archipelago Sea, the Gulf of Finland, and the Baltic Proper are described. The study showed that the combination of multiple environmental variables explained the distribution of attached and drifting forms of F. lumbricalis and different environmental variables were important for different forms of the red alga. The attached F. lumbricalis inhabited deep hard-bottom areas that were exposed to waves. The drifting F. lumbricalis was confined to deep but more sheltered habitats characterized by the presence of a weak topographic depression, soft bottoms, and a high sediment load.