Storage capacity for phosphorus during growth and maturation in a brown alga Sargassum macrocarpum.

Improved coastal management has decreased anthropogenic nutrient input over the past few decades, leading to phosphorus depletion. It has been hypothesized that phosphorus depletion in coastal environments leads to declines in macroalgae abundance. Perennial canopy-forming temperate macroalgae can experience the effects of limited phosphorus availability during seasonal phosphorus depletion periods.