NO. 1 TAYLOR: PACIFIC MARINE ALGAE 237 



Ahnfeltia Durvillaei (Bory) J. Agardh 

 Plate 79, Fig. 1 



Plants to 30 cm tall, texture tough, dull purplish red, branching habit 

 erect, sparingly dichotomously divided below with the intervals 5-10 cm, 

 more closely branched above with the intervals 1-2 cm, segments 1.5-2.5 

 mm diam., the apices rounded ; proliferous branchlets occasionally numer- 

 ous on the lower segments, 0.5-1.0 cm long. 



Howe 1914, p. 110, pis. 44, 46. 



Some of these specimens (nos. 34-214, 34-252) are quite close to 

 Howe's (loc. cit.J figures of this species and to Kiitzing's figures (1867, 

 pi. 58) as Chondrus umbellatus. However, no. 34-401 is much taller than 

 these, and 34-399 taller, more slender and with numerous patent prolif- 

 erations on the lower segments. This latter resembles the Californian 

 plant issued as Phyc. Bor.-Amer. no. 430, there called Ahnfeltia concinna, 

 a plant originally described from Hawaii but reported from Peru before 

 Howe's publication. It does not resemble Gymnogongrus tmplicatus 

 Kiitzing (1869, pi. 69), or G. Poly ides Areschoug (Kutzing 1869, pi. 

 70), both considered by De Toni ( 1897-1905, p. 256) to be synonyms of 

 A. concinna. 



Ecuador: Archipielago de Colon, I. Rabida, Hassler Exped. nos. 

 1011, 1012, June 1872. Ibid., common in the high littoral near Black 

 Beach Anchorage, I. Santa Maria, nos. 34-214, 34-252, 17, 18 Jan. 1934. 

 Ibid., intertidal on surf-beaten rocks south of the Anchorage, nos. 34- 

 399, 34-401, 30 Jan. 1934. 



var. implicata (Kutzing) Howe 



Plants intergrading with the species, the characteristic feature being 

 a decrease in the length of the branch segments and a greater angle of 

 forking, which involves first the top of the plant and then in the extreme 

 examples of the variety the whole plant, so that it becomes densely 

 crowded and reduced to a height of 2-3 cm. 



Howe 1914, p. 112, pi. 45B. 



These specimens show moderate similarity to Kiitzing's figure (1869, 

 pi. 69) of Gy?nnogongrus implicatus, but are rather more regularly 

 branched and the segments less twisted. 



Ecuador : Archipielago de Colon, dense firm clumps on littoral rocks 

 near Black Beach Anchorage, I. Santa Maria, no. 34-250B, 17 Jan. 1934. 

 Some specimens of no. 34-252 cited as belonging to the species are transi- 

 tional and show similar congestion of branches but only in the uppermost 

 part of the large plant. 



