Plants and Plant-Like Organisms
While animals often receive the most attention, there are many important, interesting species of marine plants and plant-like organisms such as marine algae. Learn about them here.
Marine algae, more commonly known as seaweeds, come in all shapes and sizes. Algae are not plants, but they are plant-like. They are classified as protists and have cell wall structures. They can also do photosynthesis like our plants on land.
Protists are a diverse group of eukaryotes that cannot be classified as animals, plants, or fungi. The marine algae kelp is a familiar protist.
The Kingdom Chromista contains plant-like organisms that possess chlorophyll a and c and other pigments that give them their yellow-brown color (fucoxanthin). Examples of chromists: brown algae (e.g., kelp), water molds, diatoms.
Green algae range from simple, one-celled organisms to complex, multi-celled organisms. They may also live in large colonies. Learn about green algae (the Chlorophyta), their distribution, classification and different green algae species.
Brown algae is the largest, most complex type of algae. This type of marine algae is brown, olive or yellowish-brown in color. Brown algae contains contains chlorophyll a and c and a pigment called fucoxanthin, which gives it its color. Types of algae include kelp, rockweeds and wracks in the genus Fucus and free-floating algae in the genus Sargassum.
Red algae are, not surprisingly, red, purplish or reddish in color. There are about 6,000 species of red algae and they are classified as protists in the phylum Rhodophyta. Red algae species range from simple one-celled organisms to complex, plant-like organisms.
"Kelp" is the general term for 124 species of brown algae that are in the Order Laminariales. Learn about kelp forests, species that inhabit them and human uses for kelp.
