''Halophila'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

seagrass Seagrasses are the only flowering plants which grow in marine (ocean), marine environments. There are about 60 species of fully marine seagrasses which belong to four Family (biology), families (Posidoniaceae, Zosteraceae, Hydrocharitaceae and ...

es in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Hydrocharitaceae Hydrocharitaceae is a flowering plant family which includes 14 accepted genera and a total of ca 135 known species (Christenhusz & Byng 2016). The family holds a number of species of aquatic plants, including tape-grass, the well-known Canadian ...

'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order

Alismatales The Alismatales (alismatids) are an order of flowering plants including about 4,500 species. Plants assigned to this order are mostly tropical or aquatic. Some grow in fresh water, some in marine habitats. Perhaps the most important food cro ...

, has evolved.

Description

These oceanic herbs grow underwater and have creeping stoloniferous stems and leafy nodes. Unlike other seagrasses, the leaves of some species of ''Halophila'' do not have basal sheaths (i.e. the bases of the leaves do not wrap around the stem to form a sheath). The flowers are unisexual. The male flowers are borne on stems. The parts occur in multiples of three along a single row. The female flowers do not have stalks. They are divided into three segments. The single chambered ovary has a long beak. The three style are long and simple. The ovules are attached on top of three placentas. The fruit is included in the bract surrounding the inflorescence (the spathe) and crowned by a beak. They have many seeds and thick embryos.

Distribution

This genus is widespread in tropical waters, the distribution range also extends to subtropical and temperate waters primarily the Indian and Pacific Oceans but also the Mediterranean and Caribbean Seas and the Gulf of Mexico. It is found growing off the coasts of Africa, India, Australia and the Pacific Islands.

Naming

The Latin

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

''halophila'' refers to salt loving.

Species

Species accepted by the

Kew Botanical Garden Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. An internationally important botanical research and education institution, it employs 1,100 ...

. # ''

Halophila australis ''Halophila australis'', the paddle weed, is a species of seagrass in the family Hydrocharitaceae Hydrocharitaceae is a flowering plant family which includes 14 accepted genera and a total of ca 135 known species (Christenhusz & Byng 2016). Th ...

'' - southern Australia # ''Halophila baillonii'' - Caribbean, North and South America # ''

Halophila beccarii ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' - South + East + Southeast Asia # ''

Halophila capricorni ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' -

New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...

, islands in

Coral Sea The Coral Sea () is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific off the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, interim Australian bioregion. The Coral Sea extends down t ...

# ''

Halophila decipiens ''Halophila decipiens'', commonly known as Caribbean seagrass or paddle grass, is a seagrass in the family Hydrocharitaceae. It grows underwater on sandy or muddy sea floors in shallow parts of tropical seas. Description '' Halophila'' is the o ...

'' - shores of Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean; Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico # ''

Halophila engelmannii ''Halophila engelmannii'' is a species of seagrass in the Hydrocharitaceae family. It is referred to by the common names star grass and Engelmann's seagrass and grows underwater on shallow sandy or muddy sea floors. It is native to the Bahamas, ...

'' - Mexico, Costa Rica, Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, United States ( PR, FL, LA, TX) # ''

Halophila gaudichaudii ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' - Indian Ocean, western Pacific # ''

Halophila hawaiiana ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' - Hawaii # ''

Halophila major ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' - Japan, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, Caroline Is, Sri Lanka # ''

Halophila mikii ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' - Japan # ''

Halophila minor ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' - Indian Ocean, western Pacific # ''

Halophila nipponica ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' (syn. ''Halophila japonica'')- Korea, Japan # ''

Halophila okinawensis ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family '' Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description Th ...

'' -

Nansei-shoto The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands ( Ōsumi, Tokara and Amami) and Okinawa Prefecture ( Daitō, Miyako, Y ...

# ''

Halophila ovalis ''Halophila ovalis'', commonly known as paddle weed, spoon grass or dugong grass, is a seagrass in the family Hydrocharitaceae. It is a small herbaceous plant that naturally occurs in sea beds and other saltwater environments in the Indo-Pacific ...

'' - Red Sea, Indian Ocean, western Pacific # ''

Halophila spinulosa ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the Family (biology), family ''Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. ...

'' - Southeast Asia, North Australia, New Guinea # ''

Halophila stipulacea ''Halophila stipulacea'' is a species of seagrass in the Hydrocharitaceae family. It is native to the Indian Ocean that spread into the Mediterranean after the opening of the Suez Canal. This seagrass is widespread through the Gulf of Aqaba. Rec ...

'' - Red Sea, Indian Ocean, invasive in the Caribbean # ''

Halophila sulawesii ''Halophila'' is a genus of seagrasses in the family ''Hydrocharitaceae'', the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved. Description The ...

'' - Sulawesi # '' Halophila tricostata'' - Queensland

References

External links

*
Western Australia Seagrass web page for Halophila
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q2688882 Hydrocharitaceae genera