THE CORALLINE ALGAE (RHODOPHYTA) OF THE CANARY ISLANDS FACED TO THE OCEAN ACIDIFICATION

Abstract

Future ocean acidification will have a widespread impact on marine species and ecosystems. Coralline algae (Corallinophycidae, Rhodophyta) are conspicuous elements of littoral communities at all latitudes. The more soluble form of calcite intervenes in the cell wall of coralline algae, making them particularly vulnerable to variations in the pH of the sea. In this review the current knowledge about the coralline algae of the Canary Islands is discussed in the context of the advances produced in recent decades both in the taxonomy (application of different taxonomic criteria) as in the ecology (a group of organisms that provide very valuable ecosystem services). In the Canary Islands, coralline algae are currently represented by 56 species, but there are good reasons to believe that this is an underestimation of the real number of species. They participate in most coastal communities and their abundance allows them to be considered characteristic elements of numerous habitats, some of them poorly investigated.