Zosteraceae FAMILY Least Concern

Zostera marina

Edibility

2/5

Medicinal

2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Botanical Description

Zostera marina is a perennial plant growing from a thick, creeping underground stem (rhizome), 2 to 5 cm long, with many roots and nodes spaced 10 to 35mm apart. Alternate ribbon-like leaves with rounded tips arise from these nodes and grow up to 120cm long and 2 - 12mm wide[ 277 Title Plants Database Publication Author Website http://plants.usda.gov/java/factSheet Publisher United States Department of Agriculture Year 0 ISBN Description An online database with an excellent collection of fact sheets about native N. American plants. ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials. This species is widespread, circumglobal in the Northern hemisphere. There have been documented localized declines in parts of the range, but not sufficient to warrant placement in a threatened category. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2013)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].

Habitat & Origin

Origintemperate

Native RangeCoastal regions of Europe, N. Africa (Morocco, Algeria), W. Asia, Russian Far East, N. America (Alaska to Mexico, Newfoundland to N. Carolina)

HabitatFine gravel, sand or mud in the sea from low water spring tides to depths of 4 metres in the Atlantic Ocean, rarely in estuaries[ 17 Title Flora of the British Isles. Publication Author Clapham, Tutin and Warburg. Publisher Cambridge University Press Year 1962 ISBN - Description A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures. ]. In the Black Sea, it is found in pure and mixed stands from 0.5 - 15 metres depth on silty-sandy substrates[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].