Fucus vermicularis Turner, 1811–1819: 61–62, pl. 221, nom. illeg. (type locality: unknown).
Sphaerococcus vermicularis C. Agardh, 1817: XVII.
Gymnogongrus vermicularis (C. Agardh) J. Agardh, 1851 [1851–1863]: 323–324.—Grunow, 1867: 73.— Reichardt, 1871: 24–25.— Dickie, 1874b: 196.— Hemsley, 1884: 281.— G. Murray, 1887: 24.— Askenasy, 1888: 42.— S. Dixit, 1970: 122.— Simons, 1977: 56, fig. 167.— R. Anderson & Bolton, 1990: 385, table 1.
Ahnfeltiopsis vermicularis (C. Agardh) P. Silva & DeCew, 1992: 578.
INDIAN OCEAN DISTRIBUTION: Mauritius, St. Paul Island, South Africa, Sri Lanka.
Note: Fucus vermicularis Turner is not priorable since it is a later homonym of F. vermicularis S. Gmelin (1768: 162, pl. XVIII: fig. 4; type locality: North Sea), which Hudson (1778: 573) placed in the synonymy of Fucus ovalis Hudson (l.c.). The latter name is an illegitimate substitute for F. ovatus Hudson (1762: 468) (Gastroclonium ovatum (Hudson) Papenfuss, an Atlantic species not reported from the Indian Ocean). Sphaerococcus vermicularis C. Agardh is treated as a nomen novum in accordance with Art. 58.3.