Saccharina latissima

Scientific classification

(unranked):     SAR

Superphylum: Heterokonta

Class:   Phaeophyceae

Order: Laminariales

Family:            Laminariaceae

Genus: Saccharina

Species:           S. latissima

Binomial name           Saccharina latissima

(L.) C.E. Lane, C. Mayes, Druehl, et G. W. Saunders

Saccharina latissima is a brown algae (class Phaeophyceae), of the family Laminariaceae. It is also known by the common names sea belt and Devil's apron, due to its shape.

It is found in the north east Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea south to Galicia in Spain. It is not found in the Bay of Biscay but is common round the coasts of the British Isles. The species is found at sheltered rocky seabeds.

S. latissima is a yellowish brown colour with a long narrow, undivided blade that can grow to 5 metres (16 ft) long and 20 centimetres (7.9 in) wide. The central band is dimpled while the margins are smoother with a wavy edge.

The frond is attached to the rock by stout rhizoids about 5 mm in diameter in the intertidal and sublittoral zones by a claw-like holdfast and a short, pliable, cylindrical stipe.

S. latissima is an ecologically important system. It is a primary producer, delivering plant material to the coastal food web. The three-dimensional forests also serve as a habitat for animals, resulting in a high biodiversity. Fish, shellfish and other animals get food and hiding places within these forests.

In 2004, scientists reported a loss in sugar kelp at 80% of the locations in the Skagerrak and 40% of the locations at the West coast of Norway.

The reasons for this loss are not fully understood, but the increase in ocean temperature, high levels of nutrients and the reduction in animal species feeding off the filamentous algae are suggested as the most likely reasons.

Genus: Laminaria

Laminaria is a genus of 31 species of brown algae commonly called "kelp". Some species are also referred to as tangle. This economically important genus is characterized by long, leathery laminae and relatively large size.

Some species are referred to by the common name Devil's apron, due to their shape, or sea colander, due to the perforations present on the lamina. It is found in the north Atlantic Ocean and the northern Pacific Ocean at depths from 8 to 30 m (26 to 98 ft) (exceptionally to 120 m (390 ft) in the warmer waters of the Mediterranean Sea and off Brazil).

According to C.Michael Hogan the life cycle of the genus involves a diploid generational system.

Laminaria japonica (J. E. Areschoug – Japón) is now regarded as a synonym of Saccharina japonica and Laminaria saccharina is now classified as Saccharina latissima.

A laminaria stick may be used to slowly dilate the cervix to induce labor and delivery, or for surgical procedures including abortions or to facilitate the placement of an Intrauterine Device.

Used for Heartburn and Indigestion relief under the brandname phycodol.

Various species of Laminaria have been used for food purposes since ancient times wherever humans have encountered them. Typically, the prepared parts, usually the blade, are consumed either immediately after boiling in broth or water, or consumed after drying, or drying then rehydrating.

The greater proportion of commercial cultivation is for algin, iodine, and mannitol, which are used in a range of industrial applications.

In South Korea it is processed into a sweetmeat known as laminaria jelly, in other countries it is also used in fresh salad form, which is also canned for preservation to deliverу and selling purposes in other regions. Many countries produce and consume laminaria products, but the largest is China.

Species[edit]

Laminaria digitata, Cyanotype by Anna Atkins, 1843

Laminaria abyssalis A.B. Joly & E.C. Oliveira – South American Atlantic

Laminaria agardhii Kjellman – North American Atlantic

Laminaria appressirhiza J. E. Petrov & V. B. Vozzhinskaya

Laminaria brasiliensis A. B. Loly & E. C. Oliveira

Laminaria brongardiana Postels & Ruprecht

Laminaria bulbosa J. V. Lamouroux

Laminaria bullata Kjellman

Laminaria complanata (Setchell & N. L. Garder) Muenscher

Laminaria digitata (Hudson) J. V. Lamouroux

Laminaria ephemera Setchell – Pacific of North America: From Vancouver to California

Laminaria farlowii Setchell – Coast of the North American Pacific

Laminaria groenlandica – British Columbia

Laminaria hyperborea (Gunnerus) Foslie – Northeast Atlantic, Baltic Sea and North Sea.

Laminaria inclinatorhiza J. Petrov & V. Vozzhinskaya

Laminaria multiplicata J. Petrov & M. Suchovejeva

Laminaria nigripes J. Agardh

Laminaria ochroleuca Bachelot de la Pylaie

Laminaria pallida Greville – South Africa, Indian Ocean, Canary Islands and de Tristán da Cunha

Laminaria platymeris Bachelot de la Pylaie

Laminaria rodriguezii Barnet

Laminaria ruprechtii (Areschoug) Setchell

Laminaria sachalinensis (Miyabe) Miyabe

Laminaria setchellii P. C. Silva

Laminaria sinclairii (Harvey ex J. D. Hooker & Harvey) Farlow, Anderson & Eaton – North American Pacific coast

Laminaria solidungula J. Agardh

Laminaria yezoensis Miyabe