Biol.

107 Examining the diversity and morphology of marine

algae
Objectives
1. Become familiar with the three phyla of macroalgae
2. Conduct a survey of local seaweeds to become familiar with species common in
Southern California
3. Characterize and compare algal morphologies and adaptations to currents, surge and
wave impact

Exercise #1 – Introduction to marine macroalgae – the seaweeds

What to do:

For this exercise I’d like you to read the “Intro to marine algae – the seaweeds” page on Canvas
to learn about the three types of algae. Then, use your knowledge of seaweeds to fill out the
table below.

Algal divisions

Phaeophyta Chlorophyta Rhodophyta

Color of algae brown green red

Overall size of Largest medium small

individual(s)

Presence of Small small absent

pneumatocysts pneumatocysts pneumatocysts

Stipe present or absent thin stopes present present absent

Blades thin and weak Robust and strong robust weak

or robust

Holdfast present or Present Present Absent

absent
 Blades mineralized N Y N
with calcium carbonate
(Y or N)

The three types of seaweeds display varying degrees of adaptation for dealing with
currents/surge and wave impact. Consider the differences in the structural features of the three
types of algae that you observe from the images on the Intro to Algae page and tell me…
(a) Which type are you most likely to find on a rocky beach subjected to high wave
impact? Why?
Green algae are most likely found on a rocky beach because they have weak blades and no
holdfast. They are more likely to be thrown around everywhere and ripped up.

(b) What are two examples of structural features that help brown algae deal with strong
currents and wave impact?
The brown algae has a holdfast and strong blades

If you were sent to a beach to collect green algae for this lab, would you go to a sheltered
portion of the beach where wave impact is low or to the exposed headland where wave impact
is high? Why?
I would go to a sheltered portion of the beach where the wave impact is low because they have
fragile, thin weak blades that can’t handle the impact of the waves.

Red algae is characterized by the presence of an accessory photo-pigment (a protein that

functions in light absorption for photosynthesis) called phycoerythrin. Given that phycoerythrin
absorbs the blue wavelength of light, what does this tell you about the depth distribution of red
algae…compared to other algae that lack such a pigment?
This helps the red algae to be able to be in the deep parts of the ocean like the photic zone
because the blue light penetrates the deep ocean.

Exercise #2 – Survey of marine seaweeds – creating species profiles of local

seaweeds

What to do:

For this exercise I’d like you to perform an internet search for five species of algae/seaweeds
common to the Eastern North Pacific and create a magazine-like “species profile” containing the
following information…
(1) The scientific name (genus and species)
(2) An image of the seaweed/algae
(3) Geographic distribution
(4) Habitat
(5) Description of the algae
(6) Fun fact about the species you are highlighting

I’ve put together an example here to show you:

Note – If you are not local to the Eastern North Pacific or wish to highlight marine algal species
closer to where you live – then that’s great, too.

1. Bull Kelp
Geographic Distribution: Alaska to Northern California
Habitat: Found in nutrient-rich waters in temperatures ranging from 5℃ to 20℃.
Description: Has a flexible stem extending to around 10-20 meters slightly getting larger to form
the buoyant bulbous structure at the top. Narrow blades grew from the floating bulb creating a
golden-brown canopy on the surface of the water.
Fun fact: helps protect coastlines from extreme wave action. Also known as “mermaids bladder”

2. Alaria
Geographic Distribution: Japan, Korea, Kuriles, Sakhalin, and Kamchatka
Habitat: Found in low water and in subtidal around 8 meters deep on rocky shores.
Description: A golden-brown to deep brown color that attaches itself to rocks and has a claw-like
holdfast. It grows in thick beds and the blades are usually long, narrow, soft, flexible, and
pointed at the tip.
Fun fact: Similar to Japanese wakame, it’s known as the “wild Atlantic wakame” and can be
used for miso soup.

3. Giant Kelp
Geographic Distribution: Grows along the coast of the northeastern Pacific Ocean from Baja
California to southeast Alaska. Can also be found in the southern oceans near South America,
South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand.
Habitat: Grows best in rocky areas with plenty of light and water motion to circulate nutrients
around the plant. Highly dependent on sunlight for photosynthesis, so it won’t be found in deep
open water.
Description: Can reach heights over 30 meters and is the largest seaweed out of all Marine
algae. Pneumatocysts help the kelp stay upright in the water as it grows vertically.
Fun fact: sea otters wrap themselves in giant keep to keep them from drifting away while
sleeping.

4. Eel Grass
Geographic Distribution: Found along both coasts in North America from North Carolina to
Labrador on the east and from Baja California to southeastern Alaska on the west. Can be
found in places like Channel Islands national park, Anacapa, Santa Cruz, and Santa Rosa
Islands.
Habitat: Grows in Tempe rates zones. Thrives in soft sea floor environments like bays and
estuaries.
Description: has a thick underground stem that is 2-5 cm long with lots of roots and nodes
spaced 1-3.5 cm apart. Ribbon-like leaves with rounded tips grow from the nodes and grow up
to 1.2 meters long and 12 mm wide.
Fun fact: alternate name is Tape grass and one of its main uses is providing shelter to animals
like sea horses who grab the leaves with their tails.

5. Kappaphycus alvarezii
Geographic Distribution: First found on easternmost Sabah and southwesternmost part of Sulu
Archipelago. Found in the Atlantic in the Caribbean, the Indian Ocean in southern Kenya, east
to Indonesia, and in the Pacific Ocean from China to the South China Sea to Hawaiian islands
including states of Micronesia and Fuji to the south of Tahiti. Was recently discovered on the
coasts of Oahu, Hawaii. Is commercially farmed across shallow waters in Asia like the
Philippines.
Habitat: found on reef flats and edges anywhere from 1-17 meters deep.
Description: Grows 2 meters long and is green or yellow. Loosely branched, robust, and
cartilaginous.
Fun fact: also known as elkhorn sea moss and can be used as a probiotic-rich in minerals for
the human immune system.

Exercise #3 - Investigating algal morphology – A draw to learn exercise

What to do:

Draw a picture of one of the specimens that you found – the browns are the easiest to illustrate.
On your drawing label the stipe, blade, pneumatocyst (if present), and holdfast (if present). For
assistance with labeling, refer to “Intro to Marine Algae” Canvas page.

Where was this particular specimen found?

The giant kelp can be found on the west coast, mainly around northeastern pacific ocean, in
cold clear water where it grows and creates kelp forest.
What are two morphological or structural features you observe in your specimen that can help
the organism deal with wave surge or wave impact?

The holdfast helps with anchoring the kelp to their structure and gas-filled bladders called
pneumatocysts to form at the base of the blades and help keep the thallus upright and close to
the surface of the water near the sun, to aid in photosynthesis.

Once you have completed the lab, go back into Canvas to submit using the link
provided.