SEAWEEDS

Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species

of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types
of Rhodophyta (red), Phaeophyta (brown) and Chlorophyta (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species
such as kelps provide essential nursery habitat for fisheries and other marine species and thus
protect food sources; other species, such as planktonic algae, play a vital role in capturing carbon,
producing at least 50% of Earth's oxygen.[3]
Natural seaweed ecosystems are sometimes under threat from human activity. For example,
mechanical dredging of kelp destroys the resource and dependent fisheries. Other forces also
threaten some seaweed ecosystems; a wasting disease in predators of purple urchins has led to a
urchin population surge which destroyed large kelp forest regions off the coast of California.[4]
Humans have a long history of cultivating seaweeds for their uses. In recent years, seaweed
farming has become a global agricultural practice, providing food, source material for various
chemical uses (such as carrageenan), cattle feeds and fertilizers. Because of their importance in
marine ecologies and for absorbing carbon dioxide, recent attention has been on cultivating
seaweeds as a potential climate change mitigation strategy for biosequestration of carbon dioxide,
alongside other benefits like nutrient pollution reduction, increased habitat for coastal aquatic
species, and reducing local ocean acidification.[5] The IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and
Cryosphere in a Changing Climate recommends "further research attention" as a mitigation tactic.[6]

Taxonomy[edit]
"Seaweed" lacks a formal definition, but seaweed generally lives in the ocean and is visible to the
naked eye. The term refers to both flowering plants submerged in the ocean, like eelgrass, as well
as larger marine algae. Generally, it is one of several groups of
multicellular algae: red, green and brown. They lack one common multicellular ancestor, forming
a polyphyletic group. In addition, bluegreen algae (Cyanobacteria) are occasionally considered in
seaweed literature.[7]
The number of seaweed species is still discussed among scientists, but most likely there are several
thousand species of seaweed.[8]

Genera[edit]

Claudea elegans tetrasporangia

The following table lists a very few example genera of seaweed.