Abstract: Halophila minor (Zoll.) den Hartog is reported as a new record of Halophila species in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), in addition to the two known species H. ovalis and H. beccarii. This also represents the first locality of the species in continental China besides the reported localities in Hainan and Nansha Islands. The Halophila species have a peculiar taxonomic history in China, especially in the Hong Kong SAR where the first record dated back to 1856 (from Kowloon Bay). Recently there has been clear scientific evidence to distinguish H. minor from H. ovata (the latter has been confirmed not occurring in the Hong Kong SAR in this report), though the former was once considered conspecific to the latter. The worldwide distribution and taxonomy of Halophila have recently been made clear and thus permitting correct identifications of the species. Seagrasses are of conservation concerns, as the coastal environment of the Hong Kong SAR has been subject to the threat of rapid infrastructure development.

Key words: Halophila, Halophila minor, Halophila ovalis, Halophila beccarii, Halophila ovata, new record, key, Hong Kong