New article: New record of Caulerpa andamanensis and Caulerpa minuta from Japan

Please take a look at our new article reporting two newly recorded species of Caulerpa (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) from Japan: Caulerpa andamanensis and C. minuta. Can you identify the two species occurring together in the photo? The species with umbrella-like erect branches is C. andamanensis, whereas the species with small blade-like erect branches is C. minuta. These two species were discovered and collected during a marine algal flora survey on Okinoerabu-jima Island in the Ryukyu Archipelago. Although these species closely resemble Caulerpa filicoides and C. parvifolia, respectively, they were distinguished based on morphological characteristics and confirmed through DNA phylogenetic analyses.

 

Suzuki, Ohashi, Hasegawa, Namba, Kosugi, Terada 2026. New records of Caulerpa andamanensis and C. minuta (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) from Okinoerabujima Island, Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan.

Phycological Research 74:
DOI: 10.1111/pre.70045

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pre.70045

 

Caulerpa andamanensis and Caulerpa minuta

「ひらめき☆ときめきサイエンス～ようこそ大学の研究室へ～KAKENHI」に採択された海藻押し葉講座のお知らせ

 6月中旬になりましたので，改めてご案内します。

「ひらめき☆ときめきサイエンス～ようこそ大学の研究室へ～KAKENHI」に採択された海藻押し葉講座のお知らせ

鹿児島大学の調査研究で採取された海藻を用い，海藻押し葉図鑑を作成する公開講座を実施します。珍しい種類もあります。夏休みの自由研究にぴったりです。

プログラム名：発見！体感！本物の海藻を見てさわって海の豊かさを知り、『海の森』図鑑をつくろう

日時：令和8年7月18日（土），25日（土）（2日間を通して1回）

13:00〜16:30

会場：鹿児島大学水産学部5号館1階

（下荒田キャンパス，鹿児島市下荒田4丁目50-20）

講師：寺田竜太（大学院連合農学研究科教授）

受講対象者：小学生5，6年生

募集人数：12名（要予約，希望者多数の場合は抽選）

申し込み先：鹿児島大学大学院連合農学研究科の以下のサイトよりお申し込み下さい。

https://homeugs.agri.kagoshima-u.ac.jp/japanese/3070/

 

 

申し込み〆切：令和8年7月5日（日）

抽選結果については，7月7日（火）までに，メールにて全員にお知らせします。

問い合わせ先：大学院連合農学研究科 連大事務室（電話099-285-8791）

企画趣旨

　山に森があるように、海の中にも森があることを知っていますか？海藻の森は、たくさんの生き物がくらす重要なところです。しかし、海の森がいろいろなところでなくなり、海の生き物や環境を守っていく上で問題になっています。海の中の異変は、海の近くにいても気づきません。今回は、海の森とそこにくらす生き物の観察を通して、身近な海の生態系や環境に関心を持ってもらいたいと考えています。

　この夏休みに、あなたも鹿児島の海の森の豊かな世界を感じてみませんか？本物の海藻を使った押し葉標本をつくり、あなただけの「かごしま海の森図鑑」にしましょう。鹿児島大学の調査研究で採集された本物の海藻を用います。珍しい海藻もたくさんあります。自由研究にもぴったりです。

 

 

「ひらめき☆ときめきサイエンス～ようこそ大学の研究室へ～KAKENHI」に採択された海藻押し葉講座のお知らせ

 

「ひらめき☆ときめきサイエンス～ようこそ大学の研究室へ～KAKENHI」に採択された海藻押し葉講座のお知らせ

鹿児島大学の調査研究で採取された海藻を用い，海藻押し葉図鑑を作成する公開講座を実施します。珍しい種類もあります。夏休みの自由研究にぴったりです。

プログラム名：発見！体感！本物の海藻を見てさわって海の豊かさを知り、『海の森』図鑑をつくろう

日時：令和8年7月18日（土），25日（土）（2日間を通して1回）

13:00〜16:30

会場：鹿児島大学水産学部5号館1階

（下荒田キャンパス，鹿児島市下荒田4丁目50-20）

講師：寺田竜太（大学院連合農学研究科教授）

受講対象者：小学生5，6年生

募集人数：12名（要予約，希望者多数の場合は抽選）

申し込み先：鹿児島大学大学院連合農学研究科の以下のサイトよりお申し込み下さい。

https://homeugs.agri.kagoshima-u.ac.jp/japanese/3070/

  

申し込み〆切：令和8年7月5日（日）

抽選結果については，7月7日（火）までに，メールにて全員にお知らせします。

問い合わせ先：大学院連合農学研究科 連大事務室（電話099-285-8791）

企画趣旨

　山に森があるように、海の中にも森があることを知っていますか？海藻の森は、たくさんの生き物がくらす重要なところです。しかし、海の森がいろいろなところでなくなり、海の生き物や環境を守っていく上で問題になっています。海の中の異変は、海の近くにいても気づきません。今回は、海の森とそこにくらす生き物の観察を通して、身近な海の生態系や環境に関心を持ってもらいたいと考えています。

　この夏休みに、あなたも鹿児島の海の森の豊かな世界を感じてみませんか？本物の海藻を使った押し葉標本をつくり、あなただけの「かごしま海の森図鑑」にしましょう。鹿児島大学の調査研究で採集された本物の海藻を用います。珍しい海藻もたくさんあります。自由研究にもぴったりです。

 

 

New article: Coralline diversity of mesophotic rhodoliths in subtropical Japan

Congratulations to Dr. Min-Khant-Kyaw, Dr. Aki Kato, and the other distinguished co-authors on this excellent article on the coralline diversity of mesophotic rhodoliths in subtropical Japan, including the description of new species of Sporolithon and the emended genera Orientalilithon and Roseolithon. We are very proud and delighted to have contributed to this study.

 

Min-Khant-Kyaw, Masasuke Baba, Ryuta Terada, Aki Kato 2026. Unveiling coralline diversity of mesophotic rhodoliths in subtropical Japan, including new species of Sporolithon, emended genera Orientalilithon and Roseolithon (Corallinophycidae, Rhodophyta). 

Journal of Phycology 

DOI:10.1111/jpy.70176

 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jpy.70176

Longterm monitoring survey

The phycology laboratories at Kobe University and Kagoshima University have participated for many years in a nationwide long-term monitoring survey of macroalgal communities in Japan. As part of the collaboration between the two laboratories, Professor Ryuta Terada, head of the Marine Botany Laboratory, Kagoshima University, participated this week in field surveys at Awajishima Island, facing the Kitan Strait (part of the Pacific Ocean), and at Takeno, facing the Sea of Japan, which were conducted by the Kobe University Research Center for Inland Seas. A phycologist from the Fisheries Research Agency of Japan also participated in the survey. During the survey, dense communities of Ecklonia cava and Sargassum species were confirmed. Recent studies have reported characteristic changes in these algal communities in Japan, and the article is freely available at the following link: DOI:10.1111/pre.70019

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pre.70019

 

Ecklonia cava (Yura, Awajishima island)

Sargassum macrocarpum (Takeno, Toyooka)

New article: Gayralia kuroshiensis (Ulvophyceae), from Fukushima, Japan

Congratulations to Dr. Koja and the distinguished co-authors on their interesting article on the ecophysiology of the cultivated green alga Gayralia kuroshiensis from Fukushima, Japan. From the Marine Botany Laboratory, Professor Ryuta Terada, the head of the laboratory, participated in this project and conducted part of the photosynthetic experiments.

Koja, Sato, Nishihara, Terada 2026. The effects of four environmental stressors, temperature, irradiance, desiccation, and salinity on the photosynthesis of a cultivated green alga, Gayralia kuroshiensis (Ulvophyceae), from Fukushima, Japan. Algal Research 96: Article 104664
DOI: 10.1016/j.algal.2026.104664

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211926426001499

 

 

New article: Humidity-dependent variation in photochemical efficiency during aerial exposure in sporophytes of the cultivated red alga Pyropia yezoensis

Please take a look at our new article on the red alga Pyropia yezoensis. We report humidity-dependent variation in photochemical efficiency during aerial exposure in the sporophytes of the cultivated Pyropia yezoensis f. narawaensis from Saga, Japan. The microscopic sporophyte that grows on dead oyster shells is known to be less tolerant of dehydration, with its photochemical efficiency declining within a few minutes under dry conditions. However, this decline can be mitigated under high or saturated humidity, suggesting that careful humidity management may improve nori cultivation.

Terada, Iwanaga, Nakahara 2026.

Humidity-dependent variation in photochemical efficiency during aerial exposure in sporophytes of the cultivated red alga Pyropia yezoensis f. narawaensis (=Neopyropia yezoensis f. narawaensis; Bangiaceae) from Saga, Japan.

Algal Research 96: Article 104699

DOI: 10.1016/j.algal.2026.104699

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211926426001840 

新刊：奄美の生物多様性と人々の暮らし

 

奄美の生物多様性と人々の暮らしに関する書籍が刊行されました。研究室の寺田が奄美の海藻と海草について執筆しています。

寺田竜太 2026．奄美の海藻・海草．

鈴木英治，久米元，髙山耕二，山城徹，山本宗立（編）

奄美の生物多様性と人々の暮らし．pp. 36–43，南方新社，鹿児島

ISBN: 978-4-86124-559-6（2026年3月25日）

https://www.nanpou.com/?pid=190553688

 

The 50th anniversary meeting of the Japanese Society of Phycology

The 50th anniversary meeting of the Japanese Society of Phycology was held at the University of Tsukuba, near Tokyo, Japan, from March 20 to 22, 2026. From the Marine Botany Lab, three faculty members and eight students attended and presented their research achievements. The next meeting will be held in March 2027 at Kagoshima University. We look forward to seeing you in Kagoshima in 2027!

 

 

New article: Significant changes in the southernmost temperate canopy-forming macroalgal communities in Japan

We are pleased to introduce our new article revealing significant changes in the southernmost temperate canopy-forming macroalgal communities in Japan. To assess the decline and species shifts in macroalgal communities over the past decade in Kagoshima Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan, we investigated the spatial distribution of kelp and fucoid communities at nine sites in early summer 2024, where data from previous surveys (conducted in the late 2000s and early 2010s) were available. We then compared the current status with that of a decade ago.

 

Zemba, Takasugi, Yunokuchi, Terada (2026). Significant changes in the southernmost temperate canopy-forming macroalgal communities in Japan: A comparison of their status in 2024 with that a decade ago. 

Journal of Applied Phycology.

 

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-025-03780-x

 

This article is open access and can be downloaded free of charge.

 

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10811-025-03780-x

 

 

New article: Nemalionopsis shawii (formerly known as Nemalionopsis tortuosa in Japan)

Please take a look at our latest article, currently available as an article in press (journal pre-proof), on the ecophysiology of the freshwater endangered red alga Nemalionopsis shawii from Japan. Although the proofs have not yet been corrected, the article has been available online since February 10, 2026. This study reports on light spectral availability and photoinhibition, temperature adaptation, and desiccation and salinity tolerances of this alga. Once the article is officially published online, it will be freely available to download as open access.

Terada, Makino, and Nishihara (2026). The effects of irradiance, temperature, desiccation, and salinity on the photosynthesis of the freshwater red alga Nemalionopsis shawii (Thoreales) from Japan. Algal Research

DOI: 10.1016/j.algal.2026.104584

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221192642600069X

 

 

Nemalionopsis shawii

New article: The phylogenetic identity and temperature effects on the photochemical efficiency of the edible green alga “Hitoegusa” (Gayralia spp., referred to as Monostroma nitidum in Japan) from Kagoshima and Okinawa, Japan

Another article was published in 2025! Please take a look at our new study revealing the phylogenetic identity and temperature effects on the photochemical efficiency of the edible green alga “Hitoegusa” (Gayralia spp., referred to as Monostroma nitidum in Japan) from Kagoshima and Okinawa, Japan. We represented that the well-known edible green alga “Hitoegusa” in Japan comprises at least two distinct taxonomic entities.

R. Terada, M. Suzuki, T. Kitayama, Y. Sato, G.N. Nishihara 2026. The phylogenetic identity and temperature effects on the photochemical efficiency of the edible green alga “Hitoegusa” (Gayralia spp., referred to as Monostroma nitidum in Japan) from Kagoshima and Okinawa, Japan. Journal of Applied Phycology 38 (Online: 22 December 2025)

DOI: 10.1007/s10811-025-03736-1 

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10811-025-03736-1 

 

New article: Significant changes in seaweed community structure revealed by a nationwide long-term monitoring survey in Japan “Monitoring-Site 1000” over the past 15 years (2008–2022)

Please take a look at our new review article on the nationwide long-term monitoring program in Japan, “Monitoring-Site 1000,” which summarizes 15 years of surveys (2008–2022) and reveals significant changes in seaweed community structure, including the disappearance of kelp forests. Since the article is open access, anyone can download it from the website. The website also provides extensive supplementary materials, including many beautiful underwater photos taken during the surveys—please don’t miss them.

 

R. Terada, T. Abe, S. Akita, M. Kamiya, H. Kawai, A. Kurashima, C. Nagasato, Y. Sakanishi, H. Shimabukuro, H. Suzuki, J. Tanaka, S. Uwai, Y. Watanabe, R. Ueno, M. Aoki 2026. Significant changes in seaweed community structure revealed by a nationwide long-term monitoring survey in Japan “Monitoring-Site 1000” over the past 15 years (2008–2022).

Phycological Research 74 (1): 39–56 

 

https://doi.org/10.1111/pre.70019 (Online: 8 December 2025; Issue: January 2026)

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pre.70019

https://doi.org/10.1111/pre.70019

 

Marine Botany Lab Achievements in 2025

These articles present the 2025 annual research achievements of the Marine Botany Laboratory at Kagoshima University, Japan. As we reflect on the past year, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to all the students, colleagues, co-authors, and contributors who helped make this year a success.

 

Articles

1. Nozomi Shiiba, Momochika Kumagai, Hikaru Endo, Tomoki Tsuruta, Keisuke Nishikawa, Yoshiki Morimoto 2025. Anti-inflammatory diterpenoids from the brown alga Dictyota coriacea. Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry 89 (2): 224–231 https://doi.org/10.1093/bbb/zbae163 (Online: 24 January 2025).

 

2. Kristina M. Hill-Spanik, Hannah Rothkopf, Allan Strand, Ryan B. Carnegie, James T. Carlton, Lucia Couceiro, Jeffrey A. Crooks, Hikaru Endo, Masakazu Hori, Mitsunobu Kamiya, Gen Kanaya, Judith Kochmann, Kun-Seop Lee, Lauren Lees, Massa Nakaoka, Eric Pante, Jennifer L. Ruesink, Evangelina Schwindt, Åsa Strand, Richard Taylor, Ryuta Terada, Martin Thiel, Takefumi Yorisue, Danielle Zacherl, Erik E. Sotka 2025. Exploring the impact of the widely introduced Pacific oyster Magallana gigas on the dispersal of Bonamia (Haplosporida): A global snapshot. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms 161: 39–46 https://doi.org/10.3354/dao03834 (Online: 6 February 2025)

 

3. Ryuta Terada 2025. Significant decline in the seaweed and seagrass communities in Kagoshima, Kyushu Island, Japan. Jeju Journal of Island Sciences 2 (1): 20–26 https://doi.org/10.23264/JJIS.2025.2.1.020 https://www.jjis.or.kr/articles/article/M4xR/ (Online: 28 February 2025)

 

4. Masahiro Suzuki, Ryuta Terada 2025. DNA-based floristic survey of red algae (Rhodophyta) growing in the mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) offshore of Tanegashima Island, northern Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan. PLoS ONE 20 (3): e0316067 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0316067 (Online: 10 March 2025)

 

5. Erik E. Sotka, Ryan B. Carnegie, James T. Carlton, Lucia Couceiro, Jeffrey A. Crooks, Hilary Heyford, Hikaru Endo, Masakazu Hori, Mitsunobu Kamiya, Gen Kanaya, Judith Kochmann, Kun-Seop Lee, Lauren Lees, Hannah Miller, Massa Nakaoka, Eric Pante, Jennifer L. Ruesink, Evangelina Schwindt, Åsa Strand, Richard Taylor, Ryuta Terada, Martin Thiel, Takefumi Yorisue, Danielle Zacherl, Allan E. Strand 2025. The genetic legacy of a global marine invader. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 122 (15) e2418730122 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2418730122 (Online: 7 April 2025) 

 

6. Masahiro Suzuki, Chiyuki Zemba, Ryuta Terada 2025. Solieria latifolia sp. nov. and S. yoshidae sp. nov. (Solieriaceae, Rhodophyta) from offshore Tanegashima Island, Japan. Phycologia 64 (2): 137–149 https://doi.org/10.1080/00318884.2025.2494493 (Online: 12 May 2025; Issue: 1 July 2025)

 

7. Ryuta Terada, Kotaro Makino, Gregory N. Nishihara 2025. The photosynthetic response of the freshwater red alga Thorea okadae to environmental gradients of temperature, irradiance, desiccation, and salinity: Adaptations to its stream habitat. Journal of Applied Phycology 37 (4): 2753–2768 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-025-03528-7 (Online: 16 May 2025; Issue: 1 August 2025)

 

8. Ryuta Terada, Aoi Shindo, Hikari Moriyama, Narumi Shimboku, Gregory N. Nishihara 2025. The effects of desiccation and salinity gradients in the photochemical efficiency of a mesophotic green alga, Ryuguphycus kuaweuweu (Ulvaceae) from Kagoshima, Japan. Phycological Research 73 (4): 294–300 https://doi.org/10.1111/pre.70010 (Online: 27 August 2025; Issue: 1 October 2025)

 

9. Ayaka Horikoshi, Hikaru Endo, Masakazu N. Aoki, Yukio Agatsuma (2025) High recruitment of the sea urchin Mesocentrotus nudus following the 2011 Tohoku Tsunami, Japan. Marine Ecology Progress Series 770: 99–112 https://doi.org/10.3354/meps14944 (Online: 2 October 2025)

 

10. Christophe Vieira, Shingo Akita, Masahiro Suzuki, Ryuta Terada, Takeaki Hanyuda, Satoshi Shimada, Shinya Uwai. Hiroshi Kawai 2025. A taxonomic sudoku: Resolving the long-standing puzzle of Japanese Dictyoteae (Dictyotales, Phaeophyceae) with new records and biogeographic insights. Journal of Phycology 61 (5): 1457–1485 https://doi.org/10.1111/jpy.70084 (Online: 10 October 2025: Issue: 23 October 2025)

 

11. Taiju Kitayama, Masahiro Suzuki, Ryuta Terada 2025. First record of Ulva kanagawae V.Carneiro, N.T.Martins & Cassano (Ulvales, Chlorophyta) from Japan. Bulletin of the National Museum of Nature and Science. Series B, Botany 51 (4): 1–9 https://doi.org/10.50826/bnmnsbot.51.4_127 (Issue: 25 November 2025)

12. Ryuta Terada, Takuzo Abe, Shingo Akita, Mitsunobu Kamiya, Hiroshi Kawai, Akira Kurashima, Chikako Nagasato, Yoshihiko Sakanishi, Hiromori Shimabukuro, Haruka Suzuki, Jiro Tanaka, Shinya Uwai, Yuki Watanabe, Ryoko Ueno, Misuzu Aoki 2026. Significant changes in seaweed community structure revealed by a nationwide long-term monitoring survey in Japan “Monitoring-Site 1000” over the past 15 years (2008–2022). Phycological Research 74 (1): 39–56 https://doi.org/10.1111/pre.70019 (Online: 8 December 2025; Issue: January 2026)

13. Ryuta Terada, Masahiro Suzuki, Taiju Kitayama, Yoichi Sato, Gregory N. Nishihara 2026. The phylogenetic identity and temperature effects on the photochemical efficiency of the edible green alga “Hitoegusa” (Gayralia spp., referred to as Monostroma nitidum in Japan) from Kagoshima and Okinawa, Japan. Journal of Applied Phycology 38: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-025-03736-1 (Online: 22  December 2025)

 

In press

14.  Kosuke Uchimura, Yushin Fujimoto, Hikaru Endo, Momochika Kumagai 2026. Marine terpenoids with antimelanogenic activity from the brown alga Dictyopteris polypodioides in B16 melanoma cells. Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry 90 (2): 166–172 https://doi.org/10.1093/bbb/zbaf167 (February 2026)

 

New article: First record of Ulva kanagawae from Ogasawara Islands, Japan

Please take a look at our new article reporting the first record of Ulva kanagawae V. Carneiro, N. T. Martins & Cassano from Chichi-jima in the Ogasawara (Bonin) Islands, Japan. This alga was described as a new species in 2023, but the type locality was São Paulo, Brazil. Our finding represents the first record of this species from the Pacific Ocean. Because the biogeographic connection between Ogasawara and São Paulo remains unclear, we are very excited to see future records that may further clarify the distribution of this alga.

Kitayama, Suzuki, Terada 2025.
First record of Ulva kanagawae V.Carneiro, N.T.Martins & Cassano (Ulvales, Chlorophyta) from Japan.
Bulletin of the National Museum of Nature and Science. Series B, Botany 51 (4): 127–135
DOI: 10.50826/bnmnsbot.51.4_127

https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/bnmnsbot/51/4/51_127/_article/-char/ja

Congratulations to Dr. Taiju Kitayama, National Museum of Nature and Science, on his great work!  

New article: Japanese Dictyoteae (Dictyotales) with new records and biogeographic insights.

Please take a look at our new article on the reassessment of the taxonomic status of Dictyoteae algae from Japan. Congratulations to Dr. Christophe Vieira on this excellent work!

Christophe Vieira, Shingo Akita, Masahiro Suzuki, Ryuta Terada, Takeaki Hanyuda, Satoshi Shimada, Shinya Uwai. Hiroshi Kawai 2025.

A taxonomic sudoku: Resolving the long-standing puzzle of Japanese Dictyoteae (Dictyotales, Phaeophyceae) with new records and biogeographic insights. 

 

Journal of Phycology 61: 1457-1485

 

DOI: 10.1111/jpy.70084

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jpy.70084

  

Dictyota haenyeosa

New article: Ryuguphycus kuaweuweu

Please take a look at our new article on the effects of desiccation and salinity gradients on the photochemical efficiency of a mesophotic green alga, Ryuguphycus kuaweuweu.

Terada, Shindo, Moriyama, Shimboku, Nishihara 2025

The effects of desiccation and salinity gradients in the photochemical efficiency of a mesophotic green alga, Ryuguphycus kuaweuweu (Ulvaceae) from Kagoshima, Japan. Phycological Research

https://doi.org/10.1111/pre.70010

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pre.70010

 

Ryuguphycus kuaweuweu

 

Second day of the Special Workshop on Making Seaweed Specimens for Elementary School Kids

On the second day of the seaweed specimen workshop for elementary school children, July 26, participants placed labels on the sheets and created their own herbarium specimens of 30 species, which were compiled into exsiccatae. The exsiccatae included field guide pages for each species, specially prepared by us for the workshop. 

This workshop was supported as part of the outreach programs under the Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS).

 

Special Workshop on Making Seaweed Specimens for Elementary School Kids

We held a special workshop on making seaweed specimens for elementary school children as part of their summer holiday activities. On the first day, July 19, participants pressed samples of 30 species collected during our field surveys, including edible species such as Nori (Pyropia) and Wakame (Undaria). After pressing the samples for the specimens, they also made seaweed bookmarks.

Next weekend, after the samples have fully dried, we will hold the second day of the workshop, during which participants will make herbarium specimens to complete their own exsiccatae. This workshop was conducted with funding from KAKENHI, provided by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS).