Other Marine Plants and Their Ecosystems

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Other Marine Plants and Their Ecosystems

• October 2, 2007

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Seaweed

• Multicellular algae - not a true plant
• Types of Seaweed
• Green Algae (Chlorophytes)
• Brown Algae (Phaeophyta)
• Red Algae (Rhodophyta)

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Green Algae (Chlorophyta)

• Many unicellular - belong to the plankton
• Multicellular green algae can only live shallow -
  why?
• Most multicellular forms are filamentous
• Thrive in shallow rocky intertidal areas

http//mari-biotech.nstl.gov.cn/MirrorResources/19
66/chlamy.gif
http//www.seaweedsofalaska.com/species.asp?Seawee
dID13
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Caulerpa
Ulva (Sea Lettuce)
Codium (Dead Mans Fingers)
http//www.smbaykeeper.org/images/site_images/caul
erpa.jpg
http//www.msc.ucla.edu/oceanglobe/specimenphotogr
aphs/Plants/Chlorophyta/Codium.jpg
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Brown Algae (Phaeophyta)

• Has pigment fucoxanthin - gives phaeophyta a
  brown/olive green color
• Can live deeper than green algae
• Includes all kelps
• Important in structuring the kelp bed and kelp
  forest ecosystems

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Brown Algae (Phaeophyta)

• Parts of a Kelp Plant
• Holdfast
• Stipe
• Blade
• Pneumatocyst (Float)

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http//www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/potd/postelsia_p
almaeformis.jpg
http//seaotter.com/marine/research/egregia/menzie
sii/html/menziesii.jpg.html
http//www.westnurc.uaf.edu/anagisa/pictures.html
Fucus (Rockweeds)
Nereocystis (Bullwhip Kelp)
Postelsia (Sea Palm)
Egregia (Feather Boa)
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Kelps

• Laminaria
• Form kelp beds (no surface canopy)
• Macrocystis (Giant Kelp)
• May reach 100 m and grow up to 50 cm/day
• Structures the massive kelp forests

http//www.ifm-geomar.de/fileadmin/ifm-geomar/allg
emein/avillwock/meeresonline/bromoform2.jpg
http//ucjeps.berkeley.edu/guide/P-58.gif
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Kelp Forests

• Found in cold regions
• Very high productivity ecosystems

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Kelp Forests
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Red Algae (Rhodophyta)

• Contain accessory pigments called phycobilins
  that mask chlorophyll
• Most are filamentous, but some have coralline
  forms (incorporate calcium carbonate into tissues)

Porphyra
Corallina
Endocladia
http//biology.unm.edu/ccouncil/Biology_203/Images
/Protists/porphyra.gif
http//www.seaweedsofalaska.com/photos/seaweed/End
ocladia_muricata_2.JPG
http//bio.classes.ucsc.edu/bio161/KFE20algae20p
hotos/Corallina
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Life History of Seaweed
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Economic Importance of Seaweed

• Food
• Products
• Algin (extracted from kelp)
• Used as a thickener and emulsifier in ice cream,
  cosmetics, and many other products
• Carrageenan (extracted from red algae)
• Thickens many dairy products
• Agar (extracted from red algae)
• Used in jellies and some pharmaceuticals

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True Marine Plants (Angiosperms)

• Seagrasses
• Salt Marshes
• Mangroves

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Seagrasses

• 50-60 species
• Roots, stems, and leaves grow from horizontal
  rhizomes
• Small and inconspicuous flowers
• Form dense seagrass beds
• Extensive distributions
• Important as nurseries

http//www.nps.gov/archive/bisc/resource/images/se
agrass.jpg
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Seagrasses
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Salt Marshes

• Ecosystems dominated by cord grasses
• Not marine plants - terrestrial plants that are
  tolerant to salt
• Require soft sediment and plenty of oxygen

Spartina
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Salt Marshes

• Very high productivity but low diversity
• Important contribution to marine food web
• Nursery area and habitats for many endangered
  species and migratory birds
• Zonation
• Lower limits set by physical stress
• Upper limits set by competition

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Mangroves

• Wetlands occupied by woody, salt-tolerant
  mangrove trees (with representatives in 16
  different plant families)
• Occur in tropical coastal areas (temperatures
  greater than 20C, latitudes less than 30)
• Important as an input of nutrients and as
  nurseries for marine fish

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