he extent of survival and potential for regrowth maybe affected by fragment size. Modular organisms are known to allocate different proportions of their energy and resources to reproduction, with larger colonies of some species investing more energy in reproduction than in growth (Jackson and Hughes 1985). If this is the case for A.palmata, smaller fragments potentially have a better chance of survival because they may concentrate their resources on growth, increasing their ability to reattach rapidly. The effect of size on survivorship of A.palmata fragments has been studied previously with conicting results, however. Highsmith et al. (1980)observed a positive correlation between fragment size and survivorship, while Rogers et al. (1982) noted that fragments that survived were smaller overall than those that died. Lirman and Fong (1997b) did not observe any relationship between fragment size and survivorship,possibly because the majority of the fragments were small. In the present study, the mean size of fragments that died was significantly smaller than that of the live fragments, with the highest rate of mortality observed among fragments under 50 cm in length.