Management of natural beds and standing stock evaluation of Hypnea musciformis (Gigartinales, Rhodophyta) in south-eastern Brazil

Hypnea musciformis, a source of Kappa -carrageenan, is abundant along the coast of Brazil. Although the species has been exploited sporadically on the north-east coast, this has been done in the absence of data on seasonal fluctuations in stock and on management of the natural beds. This paper evaluates the stock of a population from the Ubatuba Bay, S-E Brazilian Coast, and how the population recovers from monthly harvests. Dry monthly yield ranged from 4.9 to 201.2 g m super(-2) and showed no obvious seasonal pattern. The mean recovery rate after harvesting is estimated as 35 days, and the standing stock in the Bay (1.5 km) is approximately 3.68 t y super(-1) dry wt.