Epiphytes and Endophytes of the Brown Alga Punctaria plantaginea (Roth) Greville 1830 (Ectocarpales: Chordariaceae) from Peter the Great Bay, Sea of Japan

Epiphytes and endophytes of the brown alga Punctaria plantaginea from Peter the Great Bay, Sea of Japan have been studied. A total of 57 species of fouling macroalgae from the phyla Rhodophyta, Ochrophyta, Chlorophyta, and Cyanobacteria have been identified. Five species of epiphytes were not reported for the flora of Peter the Great Bay previously and four species are new records for the flora of the Far Eastern seas of Russia. The fouling species are dominated by red algae (35%); the leading species were dominated by brown algae, which account for 50% of all the species found. Facultative holoepiphytes prevail in the list. The seasonal dynamics of the species composition of epiphyton on P. plantaginea is shown for a period from February to November. The abundance of fouling algae increases from October to July. The changes in species of the fouling communities on P. plantaginea are assumed to be caused by seasonal variations in light and temperature conditions.