Characteristic changes in chlorophyll fluorescence from thalli of red alga, Porphyra, under high salt stress and during subsequent recovery were investigated, and the differences in the sensitivity to the stress among four species of Porphyra with different intertidal distributions were compared. By the treatment of NaCl with $9\%$ or higher concentrations, photochemical efficiency (Fv/Fm) decreased in a biphasic pattern: a rapid decrease was observed within 1­3 h and followed by a slow decline. The decrease of Fv/Fm was mainly due to the increase of Fo without significant increases of Fm. When the thalli treated with $15\%$ NaCl for 6 h were returned to natural sea water for recovery, the increase of Fv/Fm also showed a biphasic pattern: a rapid increase of Fv/Fm was observed within 2 h and followed by a slow increase. Differences in the sensitivity to salt stress among the four species could be found during recovery after the treatment of severe salt stress. After the treatment of $20\%$ NaCl for 6 h, Fv/Fm decreased below 0.3 in all of the four Porphyra species, and the species living in upper parts of the intertidal zone (P. suborbiculata and P. pseudolinearis) could recover better compared with the species in lower parts of the intertidal zone (P. seriata and P. yezoensis), during recovery for 24 h. The species collected from the coast of the South Sea seemed to be more tolerant than those in the East Sea.