Biodiversity & Conservation

A red seaweed - Drachiella spectabilis

Drachiella spectabilis

Image Sue Scott - Drachiella spectabilis. Image width ca 20 cm.
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Distribution map

Drachiella spectabilis recorded (dark blue bullet) and expected (light blue bullet) distribution in Britain and Ireland (see below)

Why do the maps differ?

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Drachiella spectabilis is not listed under any importance categories.

Taxonomy icon Taxonomy Taxon English term
Phylum Rhodophyta Red seaweeds
Class Florideophyceae
Authority J. Ernst & Feldmann, 1957
Recent synonyms None
Map icon Recorded Distribution in Britain and Ireland Drachiella spectabilis has been recorded around south western and western coasts of the British Isles especially offshore islands and reefs.
Habitat information icon Habitat information Large patches of Drachiella spectabilis are found on bedrock and boulders especially horizontal or gently sloping rock. It is found in Laminaria hyperborea forest and below the limit of kelp at sites exposed to moderate wave action.
Text page icon Description Drachiella spectabilis is a foliose red algae that is dark rose to rosy purple in colour with a brilliant blue and purple iridescence underwater. The short stout stipe, which is about 1 cm long, widens into very thin, dichotomously branching, flattened fronds up to 7 cm in length. There is no distinct midrib. The blades recurve and attach to the substratum with root like outgrowths from the frond tips.
Identifying features
  • Short, stout midrib (1cm long).
  • Flattened, thin, dichotomously branching fronds (up to 7 cm long)
  • Dark rose to rosy purple with brilliant blue and purple iridescence underwater.
  • Root-like outgrowths from frond tips attach to substratum.
Additional information icon Additional information

This review can be cited as follows:

Olwen Ager 2003. Drachiella spectabilis. A red seaweed. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 09/02/2010]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesinformation.php?speciesID=3204>