1.

CAULERPA TAXIFOLIA

Caulerpa taxifolia is a beautiful green seaweed with a characteristic „creeping“.

Why is that? The name „Caulerpa“ in Latin means „axis“ and „erpa“ comes from a
verb very common to verb „creep“. This algae is a fast growing marine seaweed that
is originally only found in warm tropical waters. It has been used widely as a
decorative plant,which was the source oft his big problem.

I am going to, in the next few little chapters,explain in details this fascinating living
being.

Fot the first time in history, a genetically seaweed is colonising a very large areas oft
he marine enviroment ina n uncontrollable way. This alga is mutated by exposure to
the chemicals and ultraviolet light,which probably sounds unbelievable.

2. The history of Caulerpa taxifolia

We all know that this seaweed is originally found in warm tropical waters such as
Caribbean coasts, Gulf of Gvinea, Red Sea, Maldives, East African coasts,
Seychelles, northern Indian ocean coasts etc. One question came up on my mind: „If
this seaweed groms only in tropical waters,how come we found it here,in
Mediterranean sea?“ And so I found the answers.

It all begins in 1980's,when the curator oft he tropical saltwater aquarium at the
Wilhelmina Zoo in Stuttgart notices that Caulerpa taxifolia was used as tank
decoration. It was brought by the aquarium staff and exposed for years to abiotic
stressors , chemicals and ultraviolet light, and switched on genes that were not
primarly present. The genetically altered seaweed grows even in cool water
now! Specialists had to quickly learn about these „new“ qualities so they colud know
what they are dealing with.

Here comes tha most important part of my essay. It appears that ,in 1984., Caulerpa
taxifolia was released accidentally into the coastal waters oft he Mediterranean
sea,below the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco,how ironic. Seaweed was
released after aquarium cleaning,which is highly irresponsable.

The professor at the University of Nice – Sophia Antipolis observed a path oft his
released seaweed about one meter in size located just in fron oft he Oceanographic
Museum of Monaco. Genetic analysis showed that it was genetically altered
aquarium and and nothing common to natural dispersion. Since then,Caulerpa
taxifolia colonized huge areas and it is still spreading into new habitats.

„ The modified algae grow everywhere,from the surface to the lower limits of
underwater vegetation,from rocky capes swept by storms and currents to the soft
bottoms of sheltered bays, from the polluted mudo f harbours to bottoms with diverse
flora and fauna. With its cocktail of highly toxic chemical defences,it is barely eaten
by herbivores,fascilitating its limitless spread.“ 1 I found this part of enviroment allert
bulletin very important,beacuse it is an evidence of Caulerpa taxifolia being a
monster.

3. The reproduction and spread

Caulerpa taxifolia int he Mediterranean Sea reproduces only through asexual

fragmentations and fast regeneration oft he pieces. Fragments do not float ; currents
and waves may only move them a maximum of several hundred meters. Human
activities is the major reason for dissemination of Caulerpa taxifolia. A fragmen oft he
alga can survive for about ten days out of water such as fishing net. It easily
multiplies through vegetative spreading,except fishing net,through dumping ballast
water,in particual in harbours,marinas and anywhere the boats anchor. It seems that
in most cases it has been transported by fishing equipment.. Once released into the
sea,it will start to devolp.

We learned that Caulerpa taxifolia spreads really fast,and here I found some
numbers as evidence : in five years it can affect more than 10 ha oft he sea bottom.
It is very important to find the new colonies at the beginning of their devolpment -
during first 3 years after colonization beacuse solving it is still possible. Apart from
shipping, the long-range dispersal of this alga was facilitated by the world-wide
aquarium trade.

Caulerpa taxifolia is upsetting theecosystem by invading and out-competing the

native flora while protecting itself against predation, thus threatening the biological
stability of the marine environment. With its spectacular average growth rate of one
cm per day, the seaweed becomes a major threat to protected habitats such as
eelgrass, the essential living and breeding habitat of various species.

1
S. Kluser, G. Giuliani, A. De Bono, P. Peduzzi ( January 2004.) Caulerpa taxifolia,a growing menace for the
temperate marine enviroment, UNEP.
 4. Conclusion

After a long thinking about what I should or could write for the end of my essay,as
conclusion, I came up to idea to write anda dvice what do to if someone sees
Caulerpa taxifolia Iin the sea. I read few articles and few allert bulletins and I made a
little summary.

If you see Caulerpa tafifolia somewhere TAKE CARE and DO NOT help it to spread.
Do not contaminate new areas. It is all too easy to transport this seaweed unwittingly
from already colonized sites to other areas. This explains how Caulerpa taxifolia has
managed to spread by leaps and bounds, sometimes jumping a distance of several
hundred kms.

There are a lot of advise for 1.yachtsmen: they should care to isnpect their anchors
and chains when leaving an anchorage, 2. Fisherman: check your nets and trawls.
And the last one is for divers: check your bags and equipment before each dive.

The best information I found on the Internet was the number we should call if we see
this seaweed, If you know or find any areas that Caulerpa taxifolia has already
reached,it is vital to warn as quickly as possible at these number in Croatia:

Dr.N.Zavodnik or A.Jaklin – Tel. 052/811-544

Institute „Ruđer Bošković“ Center for marine research

Rovinj,Croatia.

It is very important to contact specialists,beacuse it it the only way to stop this

seaweed to spread!