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Sargassum
echinocarpum
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Description:
Sargassum
echinocarpum has a range of colors including a dark
yellow to a dark brown. This algaes growth range
is 5-70 cm long. It's blades can be 0.5 cm to 3
cm wide. It's blades have pointy spine but are not
harmful. The blades can sometimes be smooth but
they're usually spiny.
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Habitat:
Sargassum
echinocarpum can commonly be found in rocky intertidal
areas. It likes wave washed tidepools and reef flats.
It feeds off of the nutrients that are being washed in to
the tidepools.
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Range
(include invasive, native, endemic): Sargassum
echinocarpum is an endemic species.
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| Trophic
information:
Being
an autotroph, algae has the ability to make its own food.
It uses nutrients it takes from its holdfasts and hte
nutrients are then used for photosynthesis, along with
water, carbon dioxide, sunlight,and energy. Some
predators of algae are us humans, sea urchins, blennies,
tiger barbs and other creatures in the ocean.
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Safety:
The
main safety precaution you should take is NOT to run.
Algae is commonly found on rocks and can make them slippery.
Eating algae would not be a good idea, also because there
are creatures living in them. If you do eat them,
there is a possible chance of eating a poisonous or harmful
creature.
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Comments:
Sargassum
echinocarpum isn't the most commonly found species
of algae. It isn't rare though. It's usually
pretty easy to find, it all depends on the intertidal zone.
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Links
to Resources: Seaweeds
of Hawaii by: William H. Magruder and Jeffrey W. Hunt
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