Incidence of Ice-Ice Disease Associated with Kappaphycus alvarezii in the Seaweed Farms in Zamboanga Peninsula, Mindanao, Philippines

The ice-ice disease is one of the major problems in the cultivation of seaweeds. This problem seems to have worsened in recent years without any significant solution and central production sites of seaweed like in the Zamboanga Peninsula are affected. Methods: This present study investigated the current status of incidence and degree of infection of ice-ice disease associated with Kappaphycus alvarezii brown and green during July to September, 2018 in two varying seaweed farms in the Zamboanga Peninsula, Mindanao, Philippines. Ecological parameters known to affect the occurrence of ice-ice disease were obtained in each seaweed farm such as temperature, salinity, and pH. Results: In this study, incidence (%) and degree of infection (%) of ice-ice disease found to be highest in the seaweed farm in Mampang, Zamboanga City compared in Lapuyan, Zamboanga del Sur. Results of One-Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) on the incidence (%) and degree of infection (%) of ice-ice disease reveal significant differences (p= 5.141E-09 and p=6.094E-06 at = 0.05, respectively) between the two selected farms. Conclusion: Occurrence of this disease could be attributed to the unfavorable environmental conditions. This incidence and infection of ice-ice disease are indicative of the varying resistance of K. alvarezii, thus this study may be significant with an implication to management strategies of the current status of the seaweed farms in Zamboanga Peninsula, Mindanao, Philippines.