Stats

Lifespan

Perennial

Size

Small

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Rocky intertidal

Range

North Atlantic

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Spores

Defense

Tough Texture

Status

Uncommon

About

This red algae clings to rocky shorelines across the Atlantic coast. Its body is composed of over fifty percent mucilage that keeps it flexible in crashing waves.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   seed

   A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2. 2.
   sprout

   A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3. 3.
   sapling

   A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4. 4.
   mature

   Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Rhodophyta

Class

Florideophyceae

Order

Gigartinales

Family

Gigartinaceae

Genus

Chondrus

Species

Chondrus crispus