Superior photosynthetic performance of the invasive kelp Undaria pinnatifida may contribute to continued range expansion in a wave-exposed kelp forest community

In New Zealand, the kelp Undaria pinnatifida has colonized nearly all major coastal ports and has spread to colonize diverse habitats over a range of hydrodynamic environments. We report one of the earliest surveys of the distribution of this species in Macrocystis pyrifera dominated kelp forest habitats in New Zealand alongside experiments comparing the photosynthetic physiology of U. pinnatifida to nine native co-occurring macroalgal species....