Biogeography of Batrachospermum gelatinosum (Batrachospermales, Rhodophyta) in North America based on molecular and morphological data

Fifteen populations of the widespread freshwater red alga Batrachospermum gelatinosum (L.) De Candolle were sampled throughout the geographic range in North America from central Alabama, U.S.A. (33 degrees N), to Ellesmere Island Northwest Territories (NWT), Canada (80 degrees N). Analysis of ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) 1 and 2 sequences yielded a parsimony tree with a large polytomy consisting of most populations plus a branch with one Nova Scotia and two NWT populations. The nucleotide variation, both within the polytomy and within the branch, was small (<1%). The sequence divergence between the branch and polytomy was 3%. The lengths of the ITS 1 and 2 sequences of B. gelatinosum, 216-229 and 448-458 base pairs, respectively, fall within the very broad ranges reported for other red algae. The cluster analysis of 11 morphometric characteristics revealed three groupings of populations, partly based on geographic distribution. All tundra, eastern boreal forest, and midwestern hemlock-hardwood populations were in one grouping, whereas the deciduous forest, coastal plain, and eastern hemlock-hardwood populations were in a second. However, one deciduous forest population from Rhode Island, U.S.A. was unassociated. There was considerable overlap in morphometric characteristics among the three groupings. Based on this fact and the relatively small nucleotide variation in ITS sequences, we conclude that B. gelatinosum is a morphologically variable and geographically widespread species that is a valid taxonomic entity.