PORT PHILLIP BAY


Red Seaweed 

Capriola implexa

View scientific description and taxonomy

Scientific Details

Can be (and was often previously) confused with Gelidium pusillium, which has flattened (compressed) fronds and occurs in pools at the low tide edge rather than exposed areas on rocky platforms.

Main information sources:
Womersley, H.B.S., (1984-2003). The Marine Benthic Flora of Southern Australia. Part 1-3d. Govt. Printer, South Australia.
Baldock, R.N. 2010. Algae Revealed. South Australian State Herbarium. Website.
AlgaeBase. Website.

Taxonomy

Phylum:
Rhodophyta
Subphylum:
Eurhodophytina
Class:
Florideophyceae
Subclass:
Rhodymeniophycidae
Order:
Gelidiales
Family:
Gelidiaceae
Genus:
Capriola
Species:
implexa

General Description

Cylindrical branches with irregular branching forming entangled mats. Holdfast at base is a root-like (rhizoidal) mass. Brown to dark red-brown. Up to about 2 cm long (thallus).

Biology

Can form large beds or mats on intertidal rocky shores, often in combination with the aggregating mussel Limnoperna pulex and with the tube worm Galeolaria caespitosa.

Habitat

Intertidal rocky reefs, on rough and sheltered water coasts.

Reefs

Coastal shores

Distribution guide

New Zealand and Australia.

Species Group

Seaweeds and seagrasses › Red algae

Depth

Shore (0-1 m)
Shallow (1-30 m)

Water Column

On or near sea floor

Max Size

2 cm

Diet

Photosynthetic - sunlight

Commercial Species

No

Global Dispersal

Recorded in Australia

Identify

Conservation Status

  • DSE Advisory List : Not listed
  • EPBC Act 1999 : Not listed
  • IUCN Red List : Not listed

Author

article author Pocklington, Jacqui

Jacqui Pocklington is a Research Associate with expertise in algal taxonomy.

citation

Cite this page as:
Pocklington, Jacqui, 2011, Red Seaweed, Capriola implexa, in Taxonomic Toolkit for marine life of Port Phillip Bay, Museum Victoria, accessed 25 Feb 2025, http://136.154.202.208:8098/species/11334

Text: creative commons cc by licence