In April, the sea washed up lots of Japweed, Sargassum muticum (Yendo) Fensholt, onto the sandy seashore at Studland Bay, Dorset. The stem of this brown alga measures upto a metre with short regular alternate branches bearing small ‘leaves’, and round gas bladders. These long strings of seaweed made some interesting patterns on the beach – some like tousel-headed or bearded faces, some like multi-legged sea creatures.
Revision of a post first published 29 May 2009
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