Thirty-six taxa of brown macroalgae (Phaeophyceae) are reported for the Caribbean coast of the Republic of Panama including 16 new records. Most of the species diversity is restricted to two families, Dictyotaceae and Sargassaceae. This updated list represents an increase in known algal diversity for Panama of approximately 80%, but diversity is probably underestimated as revealed by comparison to the Colombian and Costa Rican floras which harbor many species not yet recorded in the marine flora of Panama. In total species diversity, Panama’s brown algal flora is considerably less diverse than Caribbean Colombia but comparable to Caribbean Costa Rica. In addition to presenting a comprehensive species list, we propose the synonymy of Dictyota pfaffii Schnetter with D. friabilis Setchell and D. jamaicensis W.R. Taylor with D. crenulata J. Agardh and discuss other taxonomic problems regarding the Caribbean Dictyotales. |
