| Amphibolis griffithii | |
|---|---|
 | |
| A. griffithii in Yankalilla, Australia | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Alismatales |
| Family: | Cymodoceaceae |
| Genus: | Amphibolis |
| Species: | A. griffithii |
| Binomial name | |
| Amphibolis griffithii | |
Amphibolis griffithii is a seagrass found in waters along the southwestern coasts of Western Australia, extending to Encounter Bay in South Australia .
A common marine herb, the rhizomatous plant forms meadows which stabilise sands; the intertwining roots and leaves protects the substrate from ocean currents. The species is perennial, bears its male and female flowers on separate plants, and produces fruit on the leaves. The plant reproduces by viviparous means, the seed germinating before leaving the plant and floating freely. The seedling forms a comb of bristles that can anchor it at the new site before the development of roots and a rhizome allow the plant to fully establish itself.
The leaves are arranged at the end of its many branches, attached in an overlapping sheath, and are bright green, perhaps with red patches. These assist in maintaining the meadows cohesion by protecting against erosion from the ocean's currents. Each leaf blade may be up to 75mm long, with a uniform width of 2.5 to 6mm, four or five of the ribbon-like leaves rise upward from the many branches. The form of the sheath, and the longer leaves, differentiate this species from its cogener Amphibolis antarctica , and it is found in rougher oceans than that species. [ citation needed ]
Found along the western coast of Australia, south of Geraldton, and along the southern coastlines to Victor Harbor, South Australia. The occurrence of Amphibolis griffithii is also recorded near island groups of Houtman Abrolhos and the Archipelago of the Recherche. The species is found in areas of fast and constant ocean currents, the rhizomes forming dense mats on soft sand substrates. It is restricted to depths less than 16 metres in its distribution range, and it is often associated with limestone or reef ecologies. The detritus is frequently found in rotting piles along the shoreline, forming a rich habitat for other plant and animal species. The distribution range is smaller than that of Amphibolis antarctica, occupying a narrower range of habitat, possibly due to less tolerance of water temperatures and salinity. [ citation needed ]
John McConnell Black provisionally gave this species its name in 1948, the accepted species description was published by Cornelis den Hartog in 1970. [ citation needed ]
Seagrasses are the (only) flowering plants which grow in marine environments. There are about 60 species of fully marine seagrasses which belong to four families, all in the order Alismatales. Seagrasses evolved from terrestrial plants which recolonised the ocean 70 to 100 million years ago.
Zostera is a small genus of widely distributed seagrasses, commonly called marine eelgrass or simply eelgrass and also known as seaweed by some fishermen and recreational boaters including yachtsmen. The genus Zostera contains 15 species.
A seagrass meadow or seagrass bed is an underwater ecosystem formed by seagrasses. Seagrasses are marine (saltwater) plants found in shallow coastal waters and in the brackish waters of estuaries. Seagrasses are flowering plants with stems and long green, grass-like leaves. They produce seeds and pollen and have roots and rhizomes which anchor them in seafloor sand.
Amphibolis is a genus in the family Cymodoceaceae. It includes two species of sea grass endemic to the western and southern coast of Australia, Amphibolis antarctica and Amphibolis griffithii, commonly known as sea nymph or wire weed.
Amphibolis antarctica is a species of flowering plant in the family Cymodoceaceae. It is referred to by the common names wire weed or sea nymph, and is a seagrass found in coastal waters of southern and western Australia.
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.
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 occurs in sea beds and other saltwater environments in the Indo-Pacific.
Posidonia australis is a species of seagrass that occurs in the southern waters of Australia. It is sometimes referred to as fibreball weed. It forms large meadows important to environmental conservation. Balls of decomposing detritus from the foliage are found along nearby shore-lines.
Posidonia oceanica, commonly known as Neptune grass or Mediterranean tapeweed, is a seagrass species that is endemic to the Mediterranean Sea. It forms large underwater meadows that are an important part of the ecosystem. The fruit is free floating and known in Italy as "the olive of the sea". Balls of fibrous material from its foliage, known as egagropili, wash up to nearby shorelines.
The Seagrasses of Western Australia are submerged flowering plants found along the coast, around islands, and in Estuaries of Western Australia. The region contains some of the largest seagrass meadows in the world, and is the most diverse in the number of species. The variety of habitats along its western and southern coasts is often soft sands in shallow subtropical waters, ideal for these plants.
Enhalus is a monotypic genus of marine flowering plants. The sole species is Enhalus acoroides. Enhalus is large seagrass native to coastal waters of the tropical Indian and Western Pacific Oceans. It is the only species of seagrass that does aerial surface pollination in which the pollen and the styles remain dry. Enhalus is surface pollinated with male flowers that detach from the plant to float on the surface until they reach a female flower where pollination can occur. Enhalus acoroides is considered a slow-growing, "climax" species.
Zostera marina is a flowering vascular plant species as one of many kinds of seagrass, with this species known primarily by the English name of eelgrass with seawrack much less used, and refers to the plant after breaking loose from the submerged wetland soil, and drifting free with ocean current and waves to a coast seashore. It is a saline soft-sediment submerged plant native to marine environments on the coastlines of northern latitudes from subtropical to subpolar regions of North America and Eurasia.
Cymodocea nodosa is a species of seagrass in the family Cymodoceaceae and is sometimes known as little Neptune grass. As a seagrass, it is restricted to growing underwater and is found in shallow parts of the Mediterranean Sea and certain adjoining areas of the Atlantic Ocean.
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.
Zostera noltii is a species of seagrass known by the common name dwarf eelgrass. It is found in shallow coastal waters in north western Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, Caspian Sea and Aral Sea and on islands in the Atlantic off the coast of northwest Africa. It is an important part of the intertidal and shallow subtidal ecosystems of estuaries, bays and lagoons.
Halodule uninervis is a species of seagrass in the family Cymodoceaceae. It is native to the western Pacific and Indian Oceans. Common names include narrowleaf seagrass in English and a'shab bahriya in Arabic.
Thalassodendron ciliatum, the sickle-leaved cymodocea, is a species of plant in the Thalassodendron genus of seagrasses in the family Cymodoceaceae.
Zostera novazelandica Setchell is a species of seagrass in the family Zosteraceae found on the shores of New Zealand. It is regarded as a distinct species by some authors but considered as a synonym of Zostera muelleri Irmisch ex Ascherson by others. The Maori names for Zostera novazelandica are karepō, nana, rehia, and rimurehia.
Zostera muelleri is a southern hemisphere temperate species of seagrass native to the seacoasts of South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania. and New Zealand. Today, Zostera muelleri can be found in regions of Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea, as well as areas of the eastern Indian Ocean, and the southwest and western central Pacific Ocean. Zostera muelleri is a marine angiosperm, and is commonly referred to as eelgrass or garweed. It is a fast growing and readily colonizing species that serves as a feeding ground for wading birds and aquatic animals, and a breeding ground for juvenile fish and shrimp species.
Syringodium isoetifolium, commonly known as noodle seagrass, is a species of flowering plant in the family Cymodoceaceae, growing underwater in marine habitats. It forms seagrass meadows in shallow sandy or muddy locations in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
