Marine Botany

coralline crustcoralline crustcoralline crustcoralline crustcoralline crust

Nongeniculate coralline

Photos: Interesting Shots

Melobesia, an epiphytic coralline can also have epiphytes growing on it. This picture shows fungi (transparent threads) on the edges of Melobesia.

fungi

Two cross sections of Melobesia on Phyllospadix.

Melobesia section

The pink striped chiton, Tonicella lineata, feeds on crustose corallines and gets its bright colors from them.

Tonicella

A close up picture of Tonicella lineata and its amazing colors and stripes.

Tonicella

It seems that some kind of small invertebrate ate part of this alga. From the shape of the missing part it appears to be made by the radula of some kind of mollusc.

coralline with graze marks

Coralline fossil of Lithophyllum margaritae from Baja California that is 150,000 years old.

coralline fossil rhodolith

(picture courtesy of J. Connor)

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© 2001 Melissa Roth