Abstract
Spatial variation in polyphenolic content in annual shoots of the brown alga Ascophyllum nodosum was quantified using a hierarchical sampling design. Three sampling levels, covering distances of 100–106 m, were used. Comparisons were made between two areas, Tjärnö on the Swedish west-coast and the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea, with very different types of environmental conditions. No significant differences in mean polyphenolic levels were found between the two study areas (6.6% of dry mass at Tjärnö and 9.2% at the Isle of Man), whereas significant and substantial differences were found among sites within areas (range 5.7%–11.4%) and among quadrats within sites (range 3.7%–13.1 %). The extensive variation at the smaller spatial scales points out the importance of using thorough sampling procedures at all levels in large-scale studies on algal polyphenolics, e.g. biogeographical comparisons, which have been neglected in several previous studies. Moreover, the results imply that experiments on causal factors of polyphenolic variation should be designed to explain the spatial scales on which the factors are impportant. This study also investigated the relationship between polyphenolic concentration and both plant size and mean area of annual shoots. The mean area was used as an estimate of the mean growth rate of the annual shoots within an individual. No significant relationships were found between shoot growth rate, or plant size, and polyphenolic levels in annual shoots at any of the three spatial scales that were investigated.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Åberg, P., 1989. Distinguishing between genetic individuals in Ascophyllum nodosum populations on the Swedish west coast. Br. phycol. J. 24: 183–190.
Åberg, P., 1990. Measuring size and choosing category size for a transition matrix study of the seaweed Ascophyllum nodosum. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 63: 281–287.
Åberg, P., 1992. A demographic study of two populations of the seaweed Ascophyllum nodosum. Ecology 73: 1473–1487.
Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC)., 1970. Official methods of the association of official agricultural chemists. AOAC, Washington D.C.
Boettcher, A. A. & N. M. Targett, 1993. Role of polyphenolic molecular size in reduction of assimilation efficiency in Xiphister mucosus. Ecology 74: 891–903.
Bryant, J. P., F. S. Chapin & D. R. Klein, 1983. Carbon/nutrient balance of boreal plants in relation to vertebrate herbivory. Oikos 40: 357–368.
Denton, A., A. R. O. Chapman & J. Markham, 1990. Size- specific concentrations of phlorotannins (anti-herbivore compounds) in three species of Fucus. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 65: 103–104.
Geiselman, J. A. & O. J. McConnell, 1981. Polyphenols in brown algae Fucus vesiculosus and Ascophyllum nodosum: chemical defenses against the marine herbivorous snail, Littorina littorea. J. chem. Ecol. 7: 1115–1133.
Hay, M. E. & W. Fenical, 1988. Marine plant-herbivore interactions: the ecology of chemical defense. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 19: 111–145.
Hay, M. E. & W. Fenical, 1992. Chemical mediation of seaweed-herbivore interactions. In D. M. John, S. J. Hawkins & J. H. Price (eds), Plant-Animal Interactions in the Marine Benthos. Clarendon Press, Oxford: 319–337.
Johannesson, K., 1989. The bare zone of Swedish rocky shores: why is it there? Oikos 54: 77–86.
Pedersen, A., 1984. Studies on phenol content and heavy metal uptake in fucoids. Proc. int. Seaweed Symp. 11: 498–504.
Pfister, C. A., 1992. Cost of reproduction in an intertidal kelp: patterns of allocation and life history consequences. Ecology 73: 1586–1596.
Ragan, M. A. & A. Jensen, 1977. Quantitative studies on brown algal phenols. I. Estimation of absolute polyphenol content of Ascophyllum nodosum (L.) Le Jol. and Fucus vesiculosus (L.). J. exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol. 30: 209- 221.
Ragan, M. A. & K.-W. Glombitza, 1986. Phlorotannins, brown algal polyphenols. In F. E. Round & D. J. Chapman (eds), Progress in Phycological Research. Biopress Ltd., Bristol, 4: 129–241.
Rönnberg, O. & C. Ruokolahti, 1986. Seasonal variation of algal epiphytes and phenolic content of Fucus vesiculosus in a northern Baltic archipelago. Ann. hot. fern. 23: 317–323.
Singleton, V. L. & J. A. Rossi, 1965. Colorimetry of total phenolics with phosphomolybdic phosphotungstic acid reagents. Am. J. Enol. Vitic. 16: 144–158.
Snedecor, G. W. & W. G. Cochran, 1989. Statistical Methods. Iowa State University Press, Ames, 503 pp.
Steinberg, P. D., 1984. Algal chemical defense against herbivores: allocation of phenolic compounds in the kelp Alaria marginata. 223: 405–406.
Steinberg, P. D., 1989. Biogeographical variation in brown algal polyphenolics and other secondary metabolites: comparison between temperate Australasia and North America. Oecologia 78: 373–382.
Steinberg, P. D., 1992. Geographical variation in the interaction between marine herbivores and brown algal secondary metabolites. In V. J. Paul (ed.), Ecological roles of marine natural products. Cornell University, New York: 51–92.
Steinberg, P. D. & I. A. Van Altena, 1992. Tolerance of marine invertebrate herbivores to brown algal phlorotannins in temperate Australasia. Ecol. monogr. 62: 189–222.
Steinberg, P. D., K. Edyvane, R. DeNys, R. Birdsey & I. A. Van Altena, 1991. Lack of avoidance of phenolic-rich brown algae by tropical herbivores fishes. Mar. Biol. 109: 335–343.
Targett, N. M., L. D. Coen, A. A. Boettcher & C. E. Tanner, 1992. Biogeographic comparisons of marine algal polyphenolics: evidence against a latitudinal trend. Oecologia 89: 464–470.
Thorslund, B., 1966. Isförhållanden i svenska farvatten under normalperioden 1931–1960. Sveriges Meteorologiska och Hydrologiska Institut, Meteorologi Nr 13, Stockholm, 36 pp.
Tuomi, J., H. Ilvessalo, P. Niemelä, S. Sirén & V. Jormalainen, 1989. Within-plant variation in phenolic content and toughness of the brown alga Fucus vesiculosus L. Bot. Mar. 32: 505–509.
Underwood, A. J., 1981. Techniques of analysis of variance in experimental marine biology and ecology. Oceanogr. Mar. Biol. annu. Rev. 19: 513–605.
Underwood, A. J., 1991. The logic of ecological experiments: a case history from studies of the distribution of macro-algae on rocky intertidal shores. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. 71: 841–866.
Van Alstyne, K. L., 1988. Herbivore grazing increases polyphenolic defenses in the intertidal brown alga Fucus distichus. Ecology 69: 655–663.
Van Alstyne, K. L. & V. J. Paul, 1990. The biogeography of polyphenolic compounds in marine macroalgae: temperate brown algal defenses deter feeding by tropical herbivorous fishes. Oecologia 84: 158–163.
Winer, B. J., D. R. Brown & K. M. Michels, 1991. Statistical principles in experimental designs. McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1057 pp.
Winter, F. C. & J. A. Estes, 1992. Experimental evidence for the effects of polyphenolic compounds from Dictyoneurum californicum Ruprecht (Phaeophyta: Laminariales) on feeding rate and growth in the red abalone Haliotis rufescens. Swainson. J. exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol. 155: 263–277.
Yates, J. L. & P. Peckol, 1993. Effects of nutrient availability and herbivory on polyphenolics in the seaweed Fucus vesiculosus. Ecology 74: 1757–1766.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Pavia, H., Åberg, P. Spatial variation in polyphenolic content of Ascophyllum nodosum (Fucales, Phaeophyta). Hydrobiologia 326, 199–203 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00047807
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00047807