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Genus (i.e. Fucus)
Species (i.e. Gardneri)
Common Name (i.e. Rock Weed)
Phylum (i.e. Ochrophyta)
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Enigmatic Coral Seaweed
Corallina frondescens
Authority:
Postels et Ruprecht
North Pacific Distribution:
Bering Sea and Aleutian Is., Alaska, to Mexico; Russia.
Phylum:
Rhodophyta
Class:
Florideophyceae
Order:
Corallinales
Family:
Corallinaceae
Former Scientific Names:
Arthrocadia frondescens, Bossiella frondescens, Cheilosporum frondescens
Description: Thallus is calcareous, articulated, appearing light pink to light purple and reaching 3.5 cm (1.4 in) tall from a basal crust. Branching is feather-like (pinnate) to somewhat irregular. Axial segments are <1 mm (0.04 in) long, flattened, and winged, with terminal segments often broadly expanded, and occasional basal and terminal cylindrical sections. Habitat: One of Alaska’s most common corallines, this species occurs on emergent rock and in tidepools in the mid to low intertidal of protected to exposed habitats. Similar taxa: Bossiella spp., Corallina spp.
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