A Revised Checklist of Polynesian Benthic Marine Algae

Abstract

A revised checklist of 425 taxa of benthic marine algae is provided for the French Polynesian region, including the Society Islands, Tuamotu Archipelago, Marquesas Islands and Austral Islands. The list comprises 117 Cyanophyceae, 42 Phaeophyceae, 96 Chlorophyceae and 170 Rhodophyceae, representing 79 new additions to the last checklist a decade earlier. Included are all previously published records and some yet unpublished additions, with the systematic arrangement and nomenclature updated. The flora of Tahiti and its adjacent islands is quite well known, whereas the one from Marquesas, Austral and Gambier Islands have yet to be adequately examined. Also, such algal groups as the crustose Corallinaceae are still poorly studied.