New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts

---

Short communication: Occurrence and use of Compsopogon coeruleus (Rhodophyta: Compsopogonaceae) in Fiji, South Pacific

G. Robin South
Posa A. Skelton

International Ocean Institute Regional Centre for Australia and the Western Pacific
P.O. Box 1539, Townsville
Q 4810, Australia
email: robin.south@impac.org.au

Abstract   The rhodophyte Compsopogon coeruleus (Balbis ex C. Agardh) Montagne is newly recorded from Fiji, South Pacific. Plants occur in dense masses in the Wainivesi River in the province of Tailevu. Local villagers collect the plants and use them to cook a “pudding” with tinned fish, very similar to “puddings” prepared by coastal Fijians using marine species such as Gracilaria and Hypnea. This is the first documented account of the use of Compsopogon as a gelling agent in the preparation of human food.

Keywords   Compsopogon coeruleus; Rhodophyta; Fiji; uses

M02062 Received 3 August 2002; accepted 23 September 2002; Published 14 November
New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 2002, Vol. 36: 879-881
0028-8330/02/3604-0879 $7.00 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2002

PDF file of entire paper: Print-quality (532K) | screen-quality (363K)

---

This year's abstracts | Journal home page | All abstracts | Publishing home page