SENSATIONAL SEAWEED...
Marine officer Josh Symes from The Wildlife Trusts gives us the lowdown on these slimy, rock-dwelling plants
MARINE officer Josh Symes of The Wildlife Trusts is happiest when he is out exploring the beach. I caught up with him to find out all about seaweed.
How does seaweed grow?
Seaweeds are a type of plant known as Alga. Alga are not true plants, like those in your garden, so they do not produce “proper’ seeds. Instead they release thousands of tiny spores, dust-like microscopic seeds. These spores then get carried around in the ocean currents until they float down and stick on to a rock using a holdfast (the seaweed’s version of roots).
Using the power of the sun, they photosynthesise and grow up to the surface as much as possible to get the most sunlight.
Why is seaweed slimy?
Being slippery helps seaweeds survive as it allows water to brush past them as well as stop them drying out when the tide is low. Seaweed slime puts off animals trying to eat it as well. This doesn’t always work!
Which sea creatures eat seaweed?
Many sea creatures from around the world use seaweed as a big part of their diet. These herbivores include large animals such as sea-turtles in tropical seas and smaller animals like sea snails and slugs and my favourite, sea hares (a type of mollusc), which can be found munching away in rockpools around the UK.
Have you ever eaten seaweed?
Seaweed isn’t just good for sea animals; it can be very healthy for us too. You can eat lots of seaweed species in a salad, my favourite being pepper dulse, as it tastes just like garlic mayo!
Many people go foraging for seaweeds but knowing what species to eat and how not to take too much seaweed is important.
How many different seaweeds are there in this country?
Our shallow seas have over 500 species of seaweed – 6% of the entire global amount of seaweed species.
The UK can be an amazing for its colourful seaweeds, which can be split into three main groups – red, brown and green. The stunningly colourful rainbow wrack can shine blue as the sunlight bends around special cells in its fronds – known as iridescence.
Was it around with the dinosaurs?
The oldest seaweed fossil is a type of green seaweed that was found in China. It is believed to be over a billion years old!
This means that green seaweeds are 760 million years older than dinosaurs. Herbivores (planteating dinosaurs), like prehistoric giant turtles would have been swimming around seaweed meadows!