| Bennett's seaweed | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Claudea bennettiana (Vanvoorstia bennettiana) by William Henry Harvey | |
Scientific classification  | |
| (unranked): | Archaeplastida |
| Division: | Rhodophyta |
| Class: | Florideophyceae |
| Order: | Ceramiales |
| Family: | Delesseriaceae |
| Genus: | Vanvoorstia |
| Species: | †V. bennettiana |
| Binomial name | |
| †Vanvoorstia bennettiana | |
| Synonyms | |
Claudea bennettiana | |
Vanvoorstia bennettiana (Bennett's seaweed) was an extinct red algae from Australia. It is named after naturalist George Bennett. [2]
Vanvoorstia bennetiana was a small red algae. Like other members of its genus, V. bennettiana did not have significant differences in morphology throughout any phase of its life cycle. [3] It can be distinguished from other members of its genus by its small size and by the structure of its reproductive organs. [4] The overall structure of the algae is that of a blade with fine meshing. [4] For much of the time it was extant, the algae was common. [5]
The algae has only been found in two localities; both in or near Sydney Harbour. One was near the eastern part of Spectacle Island, where it was discovered between May 1 and May 15, 1855. [1] The other was in a channel between Point Piper and Shark Island, [6] where numerous specimens were collected in 1886. [7]
Since the V. bennettiana's discovery, Sydney Harbour has been massively altered by human activities. These activities substantially increased the siltation level in Sydney Harbour. Fine-meshed algae species are especially vulnerable to this type of disturbance because the particulate matter can often clog the blade and prevent light necessary for photosynthesis from reaching the organism. [4]
A search by Arthur Lucas in 1916 failed to find the species. Since it had been only found in two places, V. bennettiana became extinct by then. The causes were human disturbance, habitat destruction, and pollution. [6] Searches along the entire coastline of New South Wales failed to locate the species. [5]
Vanvoorstia bennettiana was, until an update in 2007, the only protist anywhere on the IUCN's Red List. [8]
The squirrel glider is a nocturnal gliding possum. The squirrel glider is one of the wrist-winged gliders of the genus Petaurus.
The wobbegong is the common name given to the 12 species of carpet sharks in the family Orectolobidae. They are found in shallow temperate and tropical waters of the western Pacific Ocean and eastern Indian Ocean, chiefly around Australia and Indonesia, although one species occurs as far north as Japan. The word wobbegong is believed to come from an Australian Aboriginal language, meaning "shaggy beard", referring to the growths around the mouth of the shark of the western Pacific.
Caulerpa taxifolia is a species of green seaweed, an alga of the genus Caulerpa, native to tropical waters of the Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Caribbean Sea. The species name taxifolia arises from the resemblance of its leaf-like fronds to those of the yew (Taxus).
The common seadragon or weedy seadragon is a marine fish related to the seahorses. Adult common seadragons are a reddish colour, with yellow and purple markings; they have small leaf-like appendages that resemble kelp fronds providing camouflage and a number of short spines for protection. Males have narrower bodies and are darker than females. Seadragons have a long dorsal fin along the back and small pectoral fins on either side of the neck, which provide balance. Common seadragons can reach 45 cm (18 in) in length.
The conservation status of a group of organisms indicates whether the group still exists and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future. Many factors are taken into account when assessing conservation status: not simply the number of individuals remaining, but the overall increase or decrease in the population over time, breeding success rates, and known threats. Various systems of conservation status exist and are in use at international, multi-country, national and local levels as well as for consumer use.
The long-nosed potoroo is a small, hopping, gerbil-like mammal native to forests and shrubland of southeastern Australia and Tasmania. A member of the rat-kangaroo family (Potoroidae), it lives alone and digs at night for fungi, roots, or small insects. It is also a marsupial and carries its young in a pouch. The long-nosed potoroo is threatened by habitat loss and introduced species such as cats or foxes. There are two subspecies: P. t. tridactylus on mainland Australia, and P. t. apicalis on Tasmania, with lighter fur.
The Western barred bandicoot, also known as the Marl, is a small species of bandicoot; now extinct across most of its former range, the western barred bandicoot only survives on offshore islands and in fenced sanctuaries on the mainland.
Euphrasia arguta is a plant from the genus Euphrasia (eyebrights) within the family Orobanchaceae.
Polysiphonia is a genus of filamentous red algae with about 19 species on the coasts of the British Isles and about 200 species worldwide, including Crete in Greece, Antarctica and Greenland. Its members are known by a number of common names. It is in the order Ceramiales and family Rhodomelaceae.
The Bramble Cay melomys, or Bramble Cay mosaic-tailed rat, is a recently extinct species of rodent in the family Muridae and subfamily Murinae. It was an endemic species of the isolated Bramble Cay, a low-lying vegetated coral cay with a habitable area of approximately 5 acres located at the northern tip of the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Described by researchers as having last been seen in 2009 and declared extinct by the Queensland Government and University of Queensland researchers in 2016, it was formally declared extinct by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in May 2015 and the Australian government in February 2019. Having been the only mammal endemic to the reef, its extinction was described as the first extinction of a mammal species due to anthropogenic climate change.
The hooded dotterel or hooded plover is a species of bird in the family Charadriidae. It is endemic to southern Australia, where it inhabits ocean beaches and subcoastal lagoons. There are two recognised subspecies which form isolated eastern and western populations. The eastern subspecies is of greater conservation concern, with listings varying from Vulnerable in South Australia and Victoria to Critically Endangered in New South Wales.
The Lake Pedder earthworm is an extinct earthworm species in the family Megascolecidae. Its genus Hypolimnus is monotypic.
Alaria is a genus of brown alga (Phaeophyceae) comprising approximately 17 species. Members of the genus are dried and eaten as a food in Western Europe, China, Korea, Japan, and South America. Distribution of the genus is a marker for climate change, as it relates to oceanic temperatures.
Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of Rhodophyta (red), Phaeophyta (brown) and Chlorophyta (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as kelps provide essential nursery habitat for fisheries and other marine species and thus protect food sources; other species, such as planktonic algae, play a vital role in capturing carbon, producing at least 50% of Earth's oxygen.
Red algae, or Rhodophyta, are one of the oldest groups of eukaryotic algae. The Rhodophyta also comprises one of the largest phyla of algae, containing over 7,000 currently recognized species with taxonomic revisions ongoing. The majority of species (6,793) are found in the Florideophyceae (class), and mostly consist of multicellular, marine algae, including many notable seaweeds. Red algae are abundant in marine habitats but relatively rare in freshwaters. Approximately 5% of red algae species occur in freshwater environments, with greater concentrations found in warmer areas. Except for two coastal cave dwelling species in the asexual class Cyanidiophyceae, there are no terrestrial species, which may be due to an evolutionary bottleneck in which the last common ancestor lost about 25% of its core genes and much of its evolutionary plasticity.
Macrocystis pyrifera, commonly known as giant kelp or bladder kelp, is a species of kelp, and one of four species in the genus Macrocystis. Despite its appearance, it is not a plant; it is a heterokont. Giant kelp is common along the coast of the northeastern Pacific Ocean, from Baja California north to southeast Alaska, and is also found in the southern oceans near South America, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. Individual algae may grow to more than 45 metres long at a rate of as much as 60 cm (2 ft) per day. Giant kelp grows in dense stands known as kelp forests, which are home to many marine animals that depend on the algae for food or shelter. The primary commercial product obtained from giant kelp is alginate, but humans also harvest this species on a limited basis for use directly as food, as it is rich in iodine, potassium, and other minerals. It can be used in cooking in many of the ways other sea vegetables are used, and particularly serves to add flavor to bean dishes.
Claudea is a marine red alga genus.
Desmarestia tropica, sometimes called tropical acidweed, is a species of seaweed in the family Desmarestiaceae. It is critically endangered, possibly extinct, and one of only fifteen protists evaluated by IUCN. Endemic to the Galápagos Islands, the specific epithet tropica alludes to its tropical habitat, rare for members of Desmarestiales. The common name acidweed applies to members of the genus Desmarestia, generally characterized by fronds containing vacuoles of concentrated sulfuric acid, but it is unclear if this species also produces acid.
Chondracanthus exasperatus, commonly called Turkish towel, is a species of seaweed in the family Gigartinaceae. The specific epithet exasperatus refers to the bumpy texture of the blades. This texture also leads to the common name which evokes the luxurious feel of a towel from a Turkish bath. The rough, papillae-strewn blade surface even makes it difficult to measure the temperature using infrared thermometers.
Grateloupia turuturu, known as the devil's tongue weed, is a marine species of the Rhodophyta plant, a type of seaweed, native to eastern Asia and parts of eastern Russia. Due to global shipping and maritime activities, G. turuturu has become an invasive species that has altered natural communities by out-competing native seaweed species, this has resulted in a loss of habitat in many parts of the world, primarily in Australia, northern Ireland, Great Britain, and the northeastern United States. Other common names for this species are the "red menace" and "red tide".
