Flattened Ahnfelt’s Seaweed (Ahnfeltiopsis linearis)

Description: Flattened Ahnfelt’s seaweed is also known as flat-tipped forked seaweed or Ahnfeltiopsis linearis. There are a few other species of Ahnfelt’s seaweed, like bushy Ahnfelt’s or loose Ahnfelt’s, but this species is recognizable by its flattened branching tips, which are a lighter red than the rest of the deeper maroon thallus (AKA the body of the seaweed). This seaweed is also more rigid than other leafier kinds of seaweed, and its rigidity has been compared to that of cartilage. 

Habitat: This species of red algae found along the Pacific Coast of North America. At Haystack Rock, it is found living in dense clusters in the intertidal zone (usually at lower depths) in shallow pools and sandy habitats.

Tide Pool Tidbits:

• This seaweed is named after Swedish professor and botanist Nils Otto Ahnfelt. 

• Flattened Ahnfelt’s seaweed often gets buried by sand, and can live this way for over six months. 

• While it now belongs to the genus Ahnfeltiopsis, flattened Ahnfelt’s seaweed used to be part of the Gymnogongrus genus.

References: SeaLifeBase, Netarts Bay Today