한국산 수거머리말(Zostera caulescens Miki)의 형태 및 생태적 특성에 대한 연구

Abstract

Ecological characteristics on habitats and morphological features of the seagrass Zostera caulescens Miki in Korea were examined. The biogeographical distribution of Z. caulescens was confirmed in the south coast of the Korea. Zostera caulescens usually inhabits at the inner bay, where is sheltered from wave action and 3.0 to 6.5 m deep. The sediment in habitats is composed of very fine muddy sand or sandy mud. In morphology, Z. caulescens is easily distinguished from other species of the genus by the formation of vegetative canopy on the top of reproductive stems. The number of longitudinal ribs in testa was 24 revealed by scanning electron microscope (SEM) while the number of ribs in Z. marina has been often reported to be 16-20. Purplish anthocyanin spots were displayed on the surface when the testa was removed. We found that the size and shape of leaf epidermal cells in Z. caulescens were very different from those of Z. marina when the leaf cuticles were removed by maceration, which could be useful characters for identifying Zostera species. The leaf of Z. caulescens displays two different casts of color when the fresh plant is closely observed. The margins of leaves appear brighter than the center of leaves due to the thickening by the development of paralleled venation in the middle of leaves. The comparison of two populations of Z. caulescens in Korea showed that they were considerably different in their shoot density and biomass. The shoot density and biomass at Gabae population was 367.3 m2 and 725.7 g dry wt m2, respectively, while those at Jukrim population were 112.5 m2 and 392.0 g dry wt m2, respectively.