A subtidal transect in Jervis Bay, New South Wales

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Abstract
Long-term variations in the intertidal algal flora of the entire rock platform at Plantation Point, Jervis Bay, are described by May (1981). Similar long-term changes in the flora of a subtidal region of the same headland, observed within the same period of time, are reported. This 1st detailed report of subtidal macroalgal communities in New South Wales describes a several-year study of the benthic communities along a transect in the upper sublittoral region of a rocky headland at Plantation Point, Jervis Bay. Species of algae (89) were recorded, 5 of which were previously unrecorded for New South Wales [Cladophora feredayi, Glossophora nigricans, Lophosiphonia prostrata, L. reptabunda, Stypopodium zonale]. The area studied is dominated by the large brown algae Ecklonia radiata and Phyllospora comosa, large areas of which were cleared periodically by storms. Turf, shade and crustose coralline algal communities also were present. Storms, seasonal variation and longer term changes all affected the abundance and distribution of the algal species growing along the transect, and hence the floristic composition of the area.