Tag Archives: Brown algae

Alaria nana: Brown Algae – Race Rocks Taxonomy

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Photos by Ecoguardian Ryan Murphy

Phylum: Phaeophyta
Class: Phaeophyceae
Order: Laminariales
Family: Alariaceae
Alaria nana (Schrader)

Description: The plant is olive brown to yellowish-brown in colour with a conspicuous blade (eroded at maturity), stipe, and holdfast. The holdfast is made up of short, firm root-like structures and is 3-7 cm. long, 5-8 mm. in diameter, merging into a slightly compressed rachis 2-4 cm. long. The rachis in turn merges into the blade, which is linear, tapering gradually to the apex and abruptly to the rachis; the blade is 40-60 cm. long and 3-8 cm. wide with a conspicuous, solid percurrent midrib 4-6 mm. wide.

Habitat: On rocks in the middle and upper intertidal zones in exposed areas.

Pacific Coast Distribution: Alaska to California.

Robert Scagel, 1972
See all Phaeophytes in the Race Rocks Taxonomy

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. Ryan Murphy PC yr 26

 

Alaria nana : Brown intertidal algae

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Alaria nana

Alaria nana dessiccating at low tide

Alaria nana dessiccating at low tide


Classification:
Empire Eukaryota
Kingdom Chromista
Phylum Ochrophyta
Class Phaeophyceae
Order Laminariales
Family Alariaceae
Genus Alaria
Species nana
Description: The plant is olive brown to yellowish-brown in colour with a conspicuous blade (eroded at maturity), stipe, and holdfast. The holdfast is made up of short, firm root-like structures and is 3-7 cm. long, 5-8 mm. in diameter, merging into a slightly compressed rachis 2-4 cm. long. The rachis in turn merges into the blade, which is linear, tapering gradually to the apex and abruptly to the rachis; the blade is 40-60 cm. long and 3-8 cm. wide with a conspicuous, solid percurrent midrib 4-6 mm. wide.
Habitat: On rocks in the middle and upper intertidal zones in exposed areas.. This species grows at or around zero tide level at Race Rocks. WHen battered by waves and swell it often gets a tattered appearance.
Pacific Coast Distribution: Alaska to California. –Robert Scagel, 1972

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Pterygophora californica -brown algae- The Race Rocks Taxonomy

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“The number of living creatures of all orders whose existence intimately depends on kelp is wonderful…I can only compare those great aquatic forests…with terrestrial ones in the intertropical regions. Yet if in any country a forest was destroyed, I do not believe nearly so many species would perish as would here from the destruction of kelp”

Thus commented Charles Darwin on kelp. Pterygophora californica commonly known as stalked kelp) which is part of the great kelp family that act as the trees of the oceans. This species is present, amongst other places, at Race Rocks.

BIOTIC ASSOCIATIONS: Ryan Murphy, (PC yr 26) obtained a grant from Mount Allison University in June of 2002 to help him do a project on macroalgae at Race Rocks. In this video below , he captures some of the many epiphytes growing on the perennial Pterygophora californica, a brown algae which grows sub-tidally to a depth of 12 meters at Race Rocks. It is a valuable habitat for the many invertebrates in the subtidal and serves as a buffer to storm surges. From June 2-14 a group of students from Pearson College stayed at Race Rocks for the Johan Ashuvud project. Meet the webcrew here

 

Like other kelp species, this one can mostly be found in subtidal zones. It occurs in subtidal zones mostly up to 12 meters of depth. It is mostly found therefore in subsurface canopies of kelp forests. For this reason it is able to live well around the islands of Race Rocks. The Stalked Kelp grows up to 2 meters in length. It has a straight or gnarled, woody undivided stalk and smooth , strap-like blades extending on opposite sides from the top half of the stalk . The end of the stalk results in a terminal blade with midrib and the stalk develops rings as the years go by similar to those of a tree. Pterygophora is an excellent example of a long -lived perennial seaweed. The blades usually degenerate or wear away in winter and new ones are produced each spring. Often, violent winter storms tear up some of the anchored kelp and deposit it on beaches as in the photo above.

Stalked kelp can reach an age over 17 years. It is possible to find out the exact age of a stalked kelp plant by cutting it down (best to use drift ones that are already detached) and counting the rings in its stalk. At Race Rocks this type of kelp provides habitat for a number of fish and invertebrates and a large community of epiphytic algae.

Domain: Eukarya
Kingdom: Protoctista
Phylum: Phaeophyta
Class: Phaeophyceae
Order: Laminariales
Family: Alariaceae
Genus: Pterygophora
Species: californica (Ruprecht)
Common Name: Stalked Kelp

Description:  This plant has a large stout holdfast of branched root-like structures, and a woody stipe up to 2 m. long and 2 cm. in diameter.  The stipe is terete below and flattened at the apex.  A terminal flat, smooth blade arises from the apex of the stipe; it is linear, 6-10 cm. wide, 60-90 cm. long, and tapers in the attachment region.  Sporophylls are pinnately arranged along the two sides of the flattened portion of the stipe.  The sporophylls are linear, approximately the same shape and size as the terminal blade; up to 20 occur on each side.

Habitat:  On rocks in the upper subtidal zone and down to a depth of about 5 fathoms.

Pacific Coast Distribution:  British Columbia to Mexico.

Reference:
Guide to Common Seaweeds of British Columbia, by R.F Scagel, Printed by K.M Macdonald,1972

pterpile

In the winter storms the woody Pterygophora stipes or stems often end up in drifts on the rocky beach. This photo was taken by G.Fletcher in February 2007.

pterostaranem

The stars on the stipe of Pterygophora were made by a sea urchin grazing. . Photo by Ryan Murphy

oct2011xsectptery

Annual rings in a cross-section of the stipe of Pterygophora : G Fletcher photo
taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. -Ryan Murphy  PC yr 26

 

Analipus japonicus

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Domain Eukarya
Kingdom Protoctista
Division Phaeophyta (Brown algae)
Class Phaeophyceae
Order Chordariales
Family Chordariaceae
Genus Analipus
Species japonicus (Harvey) Wynne
Common Name: thickly leaved rockweed

Description: This plant has one or more erect axes arising from a common conspicuous, lobed, encrusting holdfast. The erect portion has a percurrent cylindrical axis, up to 30 cm. high, clothed on all sides with short cylindrical to flattened branchlets up to 3 cm. long; light tan to dark brown in colour.
Habitat: On rocks in the middle and lower intertidal zones.
Pacific Coast Distribution: Bering Sea to California, (Robert Scagel, 1972)

General Characteristics
Analipus japonicus is found in the upper intertidal area frequently on rocks exposed to moderately heavy surf. This brown alga possesses a thallus of light brown color that supports branches up to 35 cm tall. Until recently, the species has been considered to be rare as it was represented by only two or three patches at Race Rocks. It is now becoming more abundant,(2002) on both the western shelf near peg 6 and the north-eastern corner near peg 15.

Reproduction Patterns
Development of the brown alga Analipus japonicus exhibits a pronounced seasonal pattern in many regions of the world. In winter and spring, this alga is found only as prostrate crusts; erect axes develop during the summer and fall. Reproduction is chiefly asexual and takes place from July to November. Unilocular sporangiate plants occur very rarely only in June and July. Plants bearing plurilocular sporangia are abundant from July to November.
Pharmaceutical Uses
In a study by various professors at the Sung Kyun Kwan University, there is a report of the results of a screening of 89 seaweeds collected from British Columbia, Canada, and Korea for antiviral activity. Various concentrations of methanol extracts of dried algae were tested against 100 plaque-forming units of herpes simplex virus type 1 and Sindbis virus in Vero cell monolayers. With reference to Analipus japonicus, it was the most potent anti-herpes species, according to the experimental results.
 References:
http://www.usfca.edu/fac-staff/chienp/division%20phaeophyta.html
Biologiya Morya, Vladivostok, 2000, vol. 26, no. 6, pp. 426-429
http://www.skku.ac.kr/~ecology/professor/abstract/biological.html

This file was provided as part of a collaborative effort by the students, faculty, staff and volunteers of Lester B. Pearson College by Paolo Danese 2002 (PC yr 28)

Nereocystis luetkeana– Bull Kelp

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Video Saltwater

Domain: Eukarya
Kingdom: Protoctista
Phylum: Phaeophyta
Class: Phaeophyceae
Order: Laminariales
Family: Lessoniaceae
Genus: Nereocystis
Species: luetkeana
Common Name:  Bull kelp
Nereocystis (greek= mermaid’s bladder) has only one species, N. luetkeana.

Plants consist of a long stipe (up to 36 m/118′) attached to the ocean floor by a holdfast composed of numerous haptera (finger-like projections) and terminated above, on the ocean surface, by a single float from which a cluster of tightly branched smooth blades arise. The blades are long (up to 4 m/13′) and narrow (usually less than 20 cm/8″ wide). Overall, this species reminds us of a very large gothic brown onion of extraterrestrial origin. This form, commonly referred to as bull kelp, is attached subtidally but forms surface canopies throughout its distribution from Alaska to central California.

At Race Rocks, all the islands are fringed by this species during the summer months. Several features make this species unique. It grows as an annual although some members persist into a second year. Most plants gets torn off by winter storms, landing on beaches to be decomposed, releasing the nutrients back into the ocean through a saprophytic food web. The following pictures illustrate the tangled masses which end up on beaches near the reserve.

This means that the plant achieves its significant length in one growing season (most growth occurs between March and September). To reach the maximum stipe lengthof 36 m (118′), the plant must grow an average of 17 cm per day over the approximate 210 day period. Nereocystis has a logistic problem in completing its life cycle. The spores are produced on the blades at the ocean surface, often several metres above the ocean floor, but a critical concentration of spores is required near where the parent plant is successfully established to assure re-occupation of this optimal space once the annual plant is lost. So the sorus (spore patch) drops from the blade and delivers its concentrated spores to the bottom before releasing the spores. This is the only kelp to release spore patches.Ronald E. Foreman in pursuit of his PhD discovered that the float, which may have a volume of up to 3 liters, has carbon monoxide, an infamous poison as one of his buoyancy gases. Foreman has studied the commercial cultivation of red seaweeds.Nereocystis on the Beach : Organisms are often involved in modifying the environment. The images in this file were taken in December 2006 after a strong north east wind pounded the lower end of Vancouver Island with the result that many Nereocystis ended up on local beaches near Race Rocks. Videos: The Color of Kelp and

 

 

 

Video: Saltwater: A video set to the music of Holly Arntzen: by Jean Olivier Dalphond (PC yr26)

See other posts on this website about Nereocystis sp.Other Phaeophytes or Brown Algae at Race Rocks

taxonomyiconReturn to the Race Rocks Taxonomy and Image File
pearsonlogo2_f2The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. original filr by: PC Susanna B. (PC yr 28)

Change in the weather

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Good Evening
TEMPERATURE: Max. 10.0 ºC »» Min. 7.1 ºC »» Reset 9.3 ºC »» Rain 0.4 mm
MARINE LIFE: Well what a change in the weather, was beginning to think we were going to miss out on the usual October Nor’easter! The breaking surf drove most of the seals and sea lions into the water and the bird population is down considerably.The temperature is really not that much different from yesterday but the wind is so cold. A lot of kelp was broken up in the 5 foot seas and has drifted away.We will soon be getting much of it back- tangled masses of driftwood and kelp on the dock- with the winter winds.
HUMAN INTERACTION: Believe it or not 5 Ecotour boats through today. Must have been quite a ride.Watched Naturally Salty ‘bounce’ through and did not envy them at all.
posted by Carol or Mike S at 6:22 PM