INTERPOPULATION AND INTRAPOPULATION GENETIC-VARIATION IN SPECIES OF PORPHYRA (RHODOPHYTA, BANGIALES) FROM BRITISH-COLUMBIA AND ADJACENT WATERS

Starch gel electrophoresis of 17 proteins has provided data on inter- and intrapopulation genetic variation in 20 species of Porphyra occurring in British Columbia and adjacent areas. P. cuneiformis and P. nereocystis showed no within species variation, even over ranges of more than 1000 km. Populations of P. abbottae, P.fallax, P.fucicola, P. gardneri and P. schizophylla were characterized by fixation for certain alleles. The number of polymorphic loci in a population ranged from zero to nine, depending on the species. Six species had populations that were polymorphic at just a single locus. Only two species (P. mumfordii and P. pseudolanceolata) had populations that were polymorphic at more than three loci. These levels of genetic variation are lower than those reported for populations of Japanese Porpkyra species. Eleven taxa were polymorphic for 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase, the most variable enzyme. No within species polymorphisms were detected for bromoperoxidase, lactate dehydrogenase, superoxide dismutase or phycoerythrin. Possible evidence for the chimeric nature of the thallus was observed only in P. mumfordii.