Settlement and growth of Chondracanthus chamissoi (Rhodophyta, Florideophyceae) carpospores on three types of substrate under semi-controlled laboratory conditions

Chondracanthus chamissoi (C. Agardh) Kützing (1843) is a red seaweed extracted along the Peruvian coast, due to its commercial importance for human consumption and the extraction of carrageenan. Despite this, in Peru there is little research aimed at the development of its cultivation. Therefore, the present study evaluated the settlement of carpospores and the growth of the attachment disc of C. chamissoi on three types of artificial substrate: nylon, raffia and polypropylene ropes under laboratory conditions, making it the first comparative study about substrate effects on this species’ development. The experiment lasted 28 days. The highest settlement was obtained on the raffia substrate (316 ± 74.48 carpospores.cm^-2), showing significant differences (p < 0.05) respect to the nylon substrate (185 ± 26.93 carpospores.cm^-2) and the polypropylene substrate (170 ± 37.03 carpospores.cm^-2). Likewise, the diameter of the attachment discs was significantly greater (p < 0.05) for nylon (40.04 ± 1.17 µm) and raffia (38.65 ± 0.90 µm) ropes compared to polypropylene ropes (32.97 ± 1.39 µm).