Brown Macroalgae and Kelp Codexery

Laminaria

A genus of brown kelp with economic and ecological importance.

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Laminaria

Anna Atkins · via Wikipedia: Laminaria · Public domain

The brown seaweed genus Laminaria, which belongs to the order Laminariales, includes 31 species that are naturally found in the northern Atlantic and northern Pacific Oceans.[1] This genus, which holds economic importance, features large size and long, leathery blades.[1] Because of their shape, certain species are known as Devil's apron, while others, due to holes in the blade, are called sea colander.[1]

Scientific classification

  1. CladeEukaryota
  2. CladeSar<!-- Do not change Sar to SAR. The consensus was to use Sar in the taxonomy template. -->
  3. CladeStramenopiles
  4. ClassPhaeophyceae
  5. OrderLaminariales
  6. FamilyLaminariaceae
  7. GenusLaminaria

Named by J. V. Lamouroux

Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Laminaria (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Quick Facts

Species count
31
Native regions
north Atlantic and northern Pacific Oceans
Ash content percent
33
Northern latitude limit
36° N

Facts from the source article.

Key facts and history

Many fish and invertebrate species find shelter within Laminaria growths.[2] From Hokkaido, Japan, Laminaria was introduced to China near the end of the 1920s.[3] Commercial cultivation of Laminaria as a crop by the Chinese began in 1949.[3] The floating raft method is the standard technique for farming Laminaria: young sporophytes are fastened to ropes that hang beneath the water.[3]

To slowly widen the cervix for inducing labor, for surgical abortions, or for inserting an intrauterine device, a laminaria stick can be employed.[4] Wherever people have encountered them, different Laminaria species have been consumed as food since ancient times.[5]

What the cited sources add

According to "Raven Biology of Plants" (2013), the sporophyte phase is the most visible form of Laminaria, and it consists of a holdfast, a stipe, and blades.[6] Reaching up to 7 m, the sporophyte of Laminaria is large relative to many other algae, yet it remains smaller than giant kelps like Macrocystis and Nereocystis, which attain lengths of 40 to 50 m.[7]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Laminaria" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Devil's Apron", C. & G. Merriam Co., 1913; "Devil's apron - Sea Vegetable" (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Laminaria" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Laminaria algae" (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Laminaria" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Culture of Kelp (Laminaria japonica) in China. FAO. June 1989. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Laminaria" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Diedrich, "Society of Family Planning clinical recommendations: Cervical preparation for dilation and evacuation at 20–24 weeks' gestation", Contraception, 2020-05-01, p. 286–292 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Laminaria" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Culture of Kelp (Laminaria japonica) in China", FAO, June 1989 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Laminaria" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Evert, "Raven Biology of Plants", W. H. Freeman and Company, 2013, p. 338 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Laminaria" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Schmitz, "Fine structure, distribution and frequency of plasmodesmata and pits in the cortex of Laminaria hyperborea and L. saccharina", Planta, September 1982, p. 385–392; Crepineau, "Characterisation of complementary DNAs from the expressed sequence tag analysis of life cycle stages of Laminaria digitata (Phaeophyceae)", Plant Molecular Biology, April 2000, p. 503–513 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Laminaria (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Lessonia (alga)MacrocystisNereocystisPostelsiaPterygophora californicaSaccharinaAlaria esculentaPleurophycus gardneriWakameAquaculture of giant kelpKombuLaminaria abyssalis

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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