More on California's rogue seaweed.Scientists reported last week that they've found genetic confirmation of their assumption that a newfound rogue alga in California waters is the same strain that has been smothering smothering death by asphyxiation. Occurs where poultry are carelessly herded into a corner where they cannot escape and where they are piled four or five birds deep; they will die of asphyxia very quickly. See also crowding. seafloor communities in the Mediterranean (SN: 7/4/98, p. 8). The scientists compared gene sequences in Caulerpa taxifolia Caulerpa taxifolia is a species of seaweed (a type of algae), native to the Indian Ocean, that has been commonly used as ornamentation in aquarium installations around the world. recently discovered in California and in specimens of the alga collected in the Mediterranean Sea Mediterranean Sea [Lat.,=in the midst of lands], the world's largest inland sea, c.965,000 sq mi (2,499,350 sq km), surrounded by Europe, Asia, and Africa. Geography The Mediterranean is c.2,400 mi (3,900 km) long with a maximum width of c. and various aquariums (SN: 11/21/98, p. 332). "All sequences were identical," reports Olivier Jousson of the University of Geneva The University of Geneva (Université de Genève) is a university in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded by John Calvin in 1559. Initially a theological seminary, it also taught law. in Chene-Bougeries, Switzerland. His team's findings appear in the Nov. 9 NATURE. The California specimens came from two sites: a lagoon in San Diego county where eradication began in July (SN: 8/5/00, p. 94) and a subsequently identified, several-year-old invasion in a cement-walled pond in Orange County. Both invasions trace to hobbyists who dumped aquarium contents into local waters. Rachel Woodfield, the San Diego-based consulting biologist who identified both invasions, says that her team began efforts to smother and poison the resilient algae algae (ăl`jē) [plural of Lat. alga=seaweed], a large and diverse group of primarily aquatic plantlike organisms. These organisms were previously classified as a primitive subkingdom of the plant kingdom, the thallophytes (plants that at the second site last month. However, that wasn't before some rogue algae had drained into and established itself in Huntington Harbor. New filters should keep any more from escaping, Woodfield told SCIENCE NEWS. She expects soon to launch efforts to eradicate the third, small invasion. |
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