''Egregia menziesii'' is a species of

kelp Kelps are large brown algae or seaweeds that make up the order (biology), order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genus, genera. Despite its appearance and use of photosynthesis in chloroplasts, kelp is technically not a plant but a str ...

known commonly as feather boa kelp. It is the only species in the

monotypic genus In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

''Egregia''. It is native to the coastline of western North America from

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

Baja California Baja California, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California, is a state in Mexico. It is the northwesternmost of the 32 federal entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1952, the area was known as the North Territory of B ...

, where it is a common kelp of the

intertidal zone The intertidal zone or foreshore is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide; in other words, it is the part of the littoral zone within the tidal range. This area can include several types of habitats with various ...

Description

It is dark brown in color, shiny and bumpy in texture, and may reach over five meters long. It grows a branching stipe from a thick

holdfast Holdfast most often refers to: *Holdfast (biology), a root-like structure that anchors aquatic sessile organisms to their substrate *Holdfast (tool), a tool used to secure a workpiece to a workbench or anvil Holdfast or hold fast may also refer t ...

. It bears long, flat, straplike fronds lined with small blades each a few centimeters long. There are

pneumatocyst In phycology, a pneumatocyst is a floating structure that contains gas found on brown seaweed. A seaweed's thallus may have more than one. They provide buoyancy to lift the blades toward the surface, allowing them to receive more sunlight for p ...

s at intervals along the fronds which provide

buoyancy Buoyancy (), or upthrust, is the force exerted by a fluid opposing the weight of a partially or fully immersed object (which may be also be a parcel of fluid). In a column of fluid, pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of t ...

. The alga varies in morphology; the

rachis In biology, a rachis (from the [], "backbone, spine") is a main axis or "shaft". In zoology and microbiology In vertebrates, ''rachis'' can refer to the series of articulated vertebrae, which encase the spinal cord. In this case the ''rachi ...

, or central strip, of the frond may be smooth or corrugated, and the blades along the edge of the rachis may be a variety of shapes. File:Mysterious kelp.jpg, Feather Boa File:Seaweed & tidepool, North Moonstone SLO.jpg, Feather Boa growing in tidepool File:Alger, Egregia Menziesii, Nordisk familjebok.png, illustration of ''Egregia menziesii''

Usage

''E. menziesii'' is used in baths or for

thalassotherapy Thalassotherapy (from the Greek word ''thalassa'', meaning "sea") is the use of seawater as a form of therapy. Note: Thalasso therapy is a sub-definition under the listing for Thalasso. It also includes the systematic use of sea products and shor ...

, along with species such as Turkish towel (''

Chondracanthus exasperatus ''Chondracanthus exasperatus'', commonly called Turkish towel, is a species of seaweed in the family Gigartinaceae. The specific epithet ' ( lit. 'roughened') refers to the bumpy texture of the blades (leaf-like structures). This texture also ...

''), finger kelp (''

Laminaria digitata ''Laminaria digitata'' is a large brown alga in the family Laminariaceae, also known by the common name oarweed. It is found in the sublittoral zone of the northern Atlantic Ocean. Description ''Laminaria digitata'' is a tough, leathery, dark ...

''), and ''

Fucus ''Fucus'' is a genus of brown algae found in the intertidal zones of rocky seashores almost throughout the world. Description and life cycle The thallus is perennial with an irregular or disc-shaped holdfast or with haptera. The erect portion ...

''.

References

External links

marine.gov ProfileAlgaeBase
Lessoniaceae Monotypic brown algae genera {{Phaeophyceae-stub

Description

Usage

See also

References

External links