Saccharina dentigera

Saccharina dentigera is a species of brown algae (class Phaeophyceae), in the family Laminariaceae. It is native to shallow water in the northeastern Pacific Ocean from the Gulf of Alaska to Baja California.

Saccharina dentigera
Scientific classification
Clade: SAR
Phylum: Ochrophyta
Class: Phaeophyceae
Order: Laminariales
Family: Laminariaceae
Genus: Saccharina
Species:
S. dentigera
Binomial name
Saccharina dentigera
(Kjellman) C.E.Lane, C.Mayes, Druehl & G.W.Saunders, 2005[1]
Synonyms[1]
  • Laminaria dentigera Kjellman, 1889

Taxonomy

This seaweed was first described in 1889 by the Swedish botanist Frans Reinhold Kjellman as Laminaria dentigera, the type location being Bering Island, where it was said to be fairly abundant, scattered across the sublittoral zone. In a revision of the genus Laminaria by C.E.Lane, C.Mayes, Druehl and G.W.Saunders in 2005, the species was transferred to the genus Saccharina, becoming Saccharina dentigera.[2]

Description

Saccharina dentigera is a large brown seaweed growing to a length of 1.5 m (5 ft). The thallus is dark brown, thick and leathery, often appearing palmate because of being split into broad lobes to within 10 cm (4 in) of its base. Younger thalli are entire with ovate blades. The thallus is supported on a robust, semi-rigid stipe, which has mucilage ducts on its surface near the upper end. The stipe is attached to a rock surface by a branched holdfast up to 8 cm (3 in) high. Each holfast only bears one thallus, but new blades sometimes start to grow before the old ones are shed.[3][4]

Distribution and habitat

The species is found in the northeastern Pacific Ocean, its range extending from the western Gulf of Alaska to the Bering Sea and the Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska, and southwards to Ensenada, Baja California. It occurs on rocky substrates in the lower intertidal zone and the shallow subtidal zone.[3][4]

Ecology

Saccharina dentigera is one of the most abundant kelps in the southern Kodiak Islands, and is the dominant seaweed at most sites in the shallow subtidal zone. The kelp forests provide shelter and substrate for many species of marine organisms. In May, it is found at these sites with reproductive structures.[5] The limpet Lottia instabilis is a specialist feeder on S. dentigera to the extent that it is essentially a parasite of the kelp.[6]

References
  1. Guiry, Michael D. (2010). "Saccharina dentigera (Kjellman) C.E.Lane, C.Mayes, Druehl & G.W.Saunders, 2015". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
  2. M.D. Guiry in Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. "Saccharina dentigera (Kjellman) C.E.Lane, C.Mayes, Druehl & G.W.Saunders". AlgaeBase. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
  3. "Saccharina dentigera". Seaweeds of Alasaka. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
  4. Abbott, Isabella A.; Hollenberg, George J. (1992). Marine Algae of California. Stanford University Press. pp. 229–231. ISBN 978-0-8047-2152-3.
  5. Calvin, N.I.; Ellis, R.J. (1978). "Quantitative and qualitative observations on Laminaria dentigera and other subtidal kelps of southern Kodiak Island, Alaska". Marine Biology. 47 (4): 331–336. doi:10.1007/BF00388924.
  6. Light, Sol Felty (2007). The Light and Smith Manual: Intertidal Invertebrates from Central California to Oregon. University of California Press. p. 25. ISBN 978-0-520-23939-5.
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