Standing-stock Biomass and Diversity of Caulerpa (Chlorophyta) in Solong-on, Siquijor Island, Philippines

Caulerpa species growing on shallow to deep waters are considered to be both economically nuisance and important. Although invasive in the temperate regions, Caulerpa species mainly C. racemosa and C. lentillifera (lato) are harvested and consumed as food, especially in the Philippines. Caulerpa communities in Solong-on, Siquijor are one of the sources for export to neighbouring municipalities. This study aimed to determine the present standing stock biomass, percent cover and diversity of Caulerpa in Solong-on, as well as to determine the environmental parameters that may affect its abundance and diversity. The results showed a total of eight species of Caulerpa were identified in the shallow Caulerpa community in Solong-on, Siquijor. The highest standing stock biomass was obtained by C. cupressoides with mean biomass of 26.16±2.44 (SE) g dry wt m-2, whereas C. microphysa has the least standing stock biomass with an average mean of 9.16±0.26 g dry wt m-2. In general, the total standing stock biomass for all species obtained throughout the sampling period was 132.57±2.06 g dry wt m-2. Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H') ranged from 1.7-2 suggesting a relatively diverse Caulerpa community. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) revealed that temperature and type of substrate were the main drivers of Caulerpa biomass