ABSTRACT
Mass blooms of green macroalgae, mainly of the genera Enteromorpha, Chaetomorpha, Cladophora and Ulva, are now widespread on intertidal flats and shallow sublittoral areas along much of the world’s coastlines. Fletcher (1996a) has provided an excellent review of the reported occurrences of such blooms. They present a significant nuisance problem, especially when loose mats accumulate on shorelines and decompose. Blooms (not all of which are due entirely to green algae; see p. 101, 103) can also have major ecological impacts on coastal systems, especially in sheltered bays, lagoons and estuaries that are often important as nursery grounds for commercial fish, as overwintering areas for migratory shorebirds, and which may support local fisheries, shellfisheries and mariculture.
