Paul Hebert envisions a not-too-distant day when barcoding can be done with a handheld device (think Tricorder from Star Trek). Until then, and maybe beyond, beachcombers and botanists, school groups and scientists alike will still use field guides and taxonomic keys to explore their world. So look sharp! And look closely. You never know when something new has crossed your path.
Beach Etiquette, Collections, Safety
As you stand on the shore, enjoying the splendour around you, consider the myriad plants and animals gasping under your boots. Anyone who ventures into the intertidal region has an adverse impact on its inhabitants, but we can minimize this impact. If you turn a rock to see what is under it, roll it back into its original position. Collect specimens only when you must. The seaweeds described in this guide can be identified in the field without being disturbed. British Columbia and all western US states have regulations governing the collection of seaweeds; become aware of these. The Nutrition and Cooking
Pacific Seaweeds
30
section (p. 281) points out the advantages and joys of eating seaweed, but this is not an endorsement of wild foraging. Sea vegetables are commercially available, having been produced on farms or harvested from the wild under controlled, sustainable conditions.
If you must make collections, do so sparingly and never remove a rare seaweed—take a photograph. A correct scientific collection requires that the entire organism be removed, as the nature of the attachment organ along with the more conspicuous plant parts are important in making detailed identifications. If you collect into plastic bags, remember that they turn into miniature greenhouses if exposed to the sun, quickly cooking your algae. Keep specimens of the brown seaweed Desmarestia (p. 193, 198) separate from other seaweeds. Desmarestia releases sulfuric acid when in captivity, which will destroy your other collections.
The best way to preserve seaweeds attractively is to press them to dryness. Arrange fresh plants on quality paper, such as herbarium paper. Fine-structured plants may be floated on the paper from a shallow tray containing seawater and then teased into a striking arrangement with a watercolour brush and needle. Then cover the plants with a clean cotton cloth and press them in a plant press. A plant press is an elaborate sandwich: outer layers of corrugated cardboard (which allow for the passage of air through the sandwich), inner layers of absorptive paper such as newspaper (to draw moisture away from the plant to the cardboard) and in the middle the herbarium paper, with its arranged plant, covered with a clean cloth. This process may be repeated over and over, creating a stack of pressed plants. The stack is sandwiched in with plywood and compressed with weights or cinched straps. When the plants are dry (they no longer feel cool to the touch), the cloth is carefully peeled off to reveal an attractive plant adhering to the paper by its own glue—a glue that prefers paper to cloth. For thick plants, it may be necessary to replace the newspaper to dry the plant fully. This process will produce eye-catching preserved specimens of many seaweeds, a notable exception being the coralline algae (red seaweeds with a hard calcareous covering, p. 76). The artist Josie Iselin has a stunning photobook of pressed seaweeds that cannot fail to inspire you.
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About Seaweeds
Fair spread on pages white, I saw arrayedThese fairy children of a sire so stern;Their beauty charmed me.—Appleton
Whenever you are exploring the seashore, remember that the beach is a dangerous, adrenaline-jerking place. Mark Denny (Stanford University), who explored adaptations of West Coast intertidal organisms to prevalent drag forces, projected the force generated by the largest expected wave for any given year as being equivalent to 13 tonnes (14 tons) on the average human form. This illustrates the challenges intertidal organisms face and a good reason to be very cautious while studying in a wave-exposed environment. Always have someone watch for menacing waves. Professor Gilbert M. Smith (Stanford University), author of the pioneer 1944 study Marine Algae of the Monterey Peninsula, California, advised that if you get caught by a wave, do not run—lie down and act like a sea star. Becoming one with the sea stars has saved BEC on several occasions.
Seaweeds like Postelsia palmaeformis can handle crashing waves; people can’t. Always keep an eye on the water when exploring the seashore.
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Pacific Seaweeds
33
Identifying Pacific Seaweeds
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Identifying Pacific Seaweeds
For the sake of simplicity, we provide only general information for the range distribution of each species and limit ourselves to the Northeast Pacific. Most known ranges in distribution probably understate the real distribution for a given seaweed species, and species are often discovered where they have not been seen previously. To assist you in remembering scientific names, we have included translations of the Latin and Greek names, though some of these translations would make a classics scholar squirm. Also, when available, common names are provided. The higher taxonomic levels of class, order and family for each seaweed species, as outlined by AlgaeBase and the book Keys to the Seaweeds and Seagrasses of Southeast Alaska, British Columbia, Washington and Oregon, are included as well.
To identify a seaweed species with this book:
1. Scan the Thumbnail Identification Guide on the following pages until you find a description that fits your specimen.
2. Turn to the page listed and compare your specimen with the description, photo and/or illustration in the text.
3. If the text and/or photo do not fit your specimen, continue down the Thumbnail Guide to further narrow your search.
34 | Thumbnail Identification Guide
Thumbnail Identification Guide
Shore Plants and Seagrasses
Flowering plants, with true roots and vascular systems, p. 39
Shore