Sargassum

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Sargassum

Sargassum is a genus of generally planktonic (free-floating) macroalgae (seaweed

Seaweed

Seaweed is a loose colloquial term encompassing macroscopic, multicellular, benthos ocean algae. The term includes some members of the rhodophyta, phycophyta and green algae....
) in the order Fucales

Fucales

Fucales is an order in the Phylum Phaeophyta or Brown algae. Members of this order are fucoids. The list of families in Fucales, as well as additional taxonomic information on algae, is publicly accessible at Algaebase....
. It is named for the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions; with a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres . It covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface....
's Sargasso Sea

Sargasso Sea

The Sargasso Sea is an elongated region in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by ocean currents. It is bounded on the west by the Gulf Stream; on the north, by the North Atlantic Current; on the east, by the Canary Current; and on the south, by the North Equatorial Current....
, which hosts a large amount of several species of Sargassum.

ies of this genus of algae

Algae

Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms. The largest and most complex marine forms are called seaweeds....
may grow to a length of several metres, they are generally brown or dark green in color and consist of a holdfast

Holdfast

Stipe (botany)

In botany, a stipe is a stalk that supports some other structure. The precise meaning is different depending on which taxonomic group is being described....
, and a frond

Frond

A frond is a large leaf with many divisions to it, and the term is typically used for the leaves of Arecaceaes, ferns or cycads. A frond is the leaf- like structure of a fern or alga....
. Oogonia and antheridia occur in conceptacles embedded in receptacles on special branches.

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Encyclopedia

Sargassum is a genus of generally planktonic (free-floating) macroalgae (seaweed

Seaweed

Fucales

Atlantic Ocean

Sargasso Sea

Description

Species of this genus of algae

Algae

Holdfast

Stipe (botany)

In botany, a stipe is a stalk that supports some other structure. The precise meaning is different depending on which taxonomic group is being described....
, and a frond

Frond

Photosynthesis

File:Seawifs global biosphere.jpgPhotosynthesis is a metabolic pathway that converts carbon dioxide into organic compounds, especially sugars, using the energy from sunlight....
. Many have a rough sticky texture, which together with a robust but flexible body, helps it to withstand strong water currents.

The thick masses of Sargassum provide an environment for a distinctive and specialised group of marine animals and plants, many of which are not found elsewhere.

Sargassum is commonly found in the beach drift near Sargassum beds where they are also known as Gulfweed, and colloquially as the weed of deceit, a term also used to include all seaweed species washed up on shore.

Sargassum species are found throughout tropical areas of the world and are often the most obvious macrophyte in near-shore areas where Sargassum beds often occur near coral reef

Coral reef

Coral reefs are aragonite structures produced by living organisms. In most reefs the predominant organisms are colonial cnidarian that secrete an exoskeleton of calcium carbonate....
s. The plants grow subtidally and attach to coral, rocks or shells in moderately exposed or sheltered rocky or pebble areas. In some cases (e.g., the Sargasso Sea

Sargasso Sea

Sargassum muticum (Yendo) Fensholt

Description

Sargassum muticum is a large brown seaweed of the Division Phaeophyta. It grows attached to rocks by a perennial

Perennial plant

A perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants....
holdfast

Holdfast

A holdfast is a root-like structure that anchors aquatic animal Sessility organisms, such as seaweed, other sessile algae, stalked crinoids, benthic cnidarians, and sponges, to the substrate. ...
up to 5 cm in diameter. From this holdfast the main axis grows to a maximum of 5 cm high. The leaf-like laminae and primary lateral branches grow from this stipe. In warm waters it can grow to 12 m long, however in British waters it gives rise to a single main axis with secondary and tertiary branches which are shed annually. Numerous small 2-6 mm stalked air vesicles provide buoyancy. The reproductive receptacles are also stalked and develop in the axils of leafy laminae. It is self fertile.

History

The Florida Keys

Florida Keys

The Florida Keys are an archipelago of about 1700 islands in the southeast United States. They begin at the southeastern tip of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami, Florida, and extend in a gentle arc south-southwest and then westward to Key West, Florida, the westernmost of the inhabited islands, and on to the uninhabited Dry Tort...
and its smaller islands are well known for their high levels of Sargassum covering their shores. Gulfweed was observed by Columbus

Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus was a Republic of Genoa navigator, colonialist and explorer whose voyages across the Atlantic Ocean?funded by Queen Isabella of Spain?led to general European awareness of the America in the Western Hemisphere....
. Although it was formerly thought to cover the entirety of the Sargasso Sea

Sargasso Sea

The Sargasso Sea is an elongated region in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by ocean currents. It is bounded on the west by the Gulf Stream; on the north, by the North Atlantic Current; on the east, by the Canary Current; and on the south, by the North Equatorial Current....
, making navigation impossible, it has since been found to occur only in drifts.

Sargassum muticum originally from Japan

Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
had by 15 March 1995 been found in Strangford Lough

Strangford Lough

Strangford Lough is a lough in County Down, Northern Ireland, separated from the Irish Sea by the Ards Peninsula. It is a popular tourist attraction noted for its fishing and the picturesque villages and townships which border its waters....
, County Down

County Down

County Down is one of the nine Counties of Ireland that form the province of Ulster and one of six counties that form Northern Ireland. The county forms an area of ....
, Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

conventional_long_name = Northern Ireland|native_name= Tuaisceart ?ireannNorlin Airlann|motto =|image_map = Europe location N-IRL2.png...
, this is an extension of the distribution of this invasive species. Herbarium

Herbarium

In botany, a herbarium is a collection of preserved plant specimens. These specimens may be whole plants or plant parts: these will usually be in a dried form, mounted on a sheet, but depending upon the material may also be kept in alcohol or other preservative....
specimens are now stored in the Ulster Museum

Ulster Museum

The Ulster Museum is located in the Belfast Botanic Gardens in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and has around 8,000 square metres of public display space, featuring material from the collections of Fine Art and Applied Art, Archaeology, Ethnography, Treasures from the Spanish Armada in Ireland, Local History, Numismatics, Industrial Archaeolo...
(BEL catalogue numbers: F11241 - F11242; F11182 - F11185). The species was first found in the British Isles

British Isles

The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include Great Britain and Ireland, and numerous smaller islands....
in the Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight

The Isle of Wight is an England island and county, located 3-8 km from the south coast of the mainland, in the English Channel. It is situated south of the county of Hampshire and is separated from mainland Britain by the Solent....
in 1973. It is thought to have gained worldwide distribution through being transported with Japanese oyster

Oyster

The common name oyster is used for a number of different groups of bivalve mollusks, most of which live in marine habitats or brackish water....
s. There is much concern about its impact on the coastal environment. It has become a great nuisance forming large detached mats, clogging marinas, recreational areas and other sports facilities. It can foul fishing lines, clog pipes of boats and trap debris.

The species is particularly tenacious with fast growth rates, high reproductive rates and an ability to spread vegetatively.

Sargassum is also cultivated and cleaned for use as an herbal remedy. Many Chinese herbalists prescribe powdered sargassum in paper packets of 0.5 gm, to be dissolved in warm water and drank as a tea. It is said to remove excess phlegm. When sold in this application it is commonly referred to as Seaweed Sargassum Tea.

Distribution

Sargassum muticum has a range stretching from Nanaimo, British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's Provinces and territories of Canada and is famed for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu ....
to Baja

Baja California

Baja California is the northernmost States of Mexico of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North Territory of Baja California....
in California

California

California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
. In Europe

Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
it now extends along the coasts of Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the List of islands by area, and the largest in Europe. With a population of 58.9 million people it is List of islands by population....
, France

France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
, Scandinavia

Scandinavia

Scandinavia is a historical and geographical subregion in northern Europe that includes the Scandinavian Peninsula. It consists of the kingdoms of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark; some authorities also include Finland and some might even include Iceland....
, Baltic Sea

Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea is a brackish inland sea located in Northern Europe, from 53?N to 66?N latitude and from 20?E to 26?E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Denmark islands....
, Helgoland, Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a country that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands is located in North-West Europe, and bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east....
, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is the List of islands by area in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islet....
, the Iberian Peninsula

Iberian Peninsula

The Iberian Peninsula, or Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes modern-day Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and a very small area of France....
and into the Mediterranean from Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
and the Adriatic

Adriatic Sea

The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges....
. It is recorded from Japan, China

China

China is a Culture of China, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
and Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest U.S. state of the United States by area; it is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait....
.

Life history

Life history.

Habitat

Sargassum muticum grows in from just below low-water mark to a depth of 10 m.

External links

Sargassum in Northern Ireland.

Sargassum - reproduction.

Sargassum

Description

Sargassum muticum (Yendo) Fensholt

Description

History

Distribution

Life history

Habitat

Further reading

External links