Marine Wildlife Encyclopedia
Spectacular Seaweed Drachiella spectabilis
This colorful seaweed is rarely seen, except by divers, as it normally grows in relatively deep water, and is rarely washed ashore. It also grows in shallower water within kelp forests. It has a thin, fan-shaped frond, split into wedges, that spreads out over the rock and reattaches with small rootlike structures called rhizoids. Young plants have a purple-blue iridescence, which is lost as the seaweed ages. Sexual reproduction is unknown in this species and spores are produced asexually.
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- Kingdom Phaeophyta
- Length Up to 2 in (6 cm)
- Habitat Subtidal rocks at 6–100 ft (2–30 m)
- Water_temperature 46–64°F (8–18°C)
- Distribution Off western coasts of Scotland, UK, Ireland, France, and Spain
