STAUROMEDUSAE UK

An online guide to the Stalked jellyfish (Stauromedusae) found
around the coastal waters of the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Includes notes on their identification, and where and how to find them.

Many species of algae are import for stauromedusae. Some species of stauromedusae are fairly cosmopolitan but other species are most likely found on a limited number of algal species. The following is a guide to species on which stauromedusae are usually found. This is not a definitive list and more species will be added in time, but the most important species are most likely to be added already. The marine plant species Zostera marina, or Eelgrass is of great importance.

Brown Seaweed

Bifurcaria
Bifurcaria bifurcata R.Ross, 1958
- Brown tuning fork weed

Cladostephus
Cladostephus spongiosus (Hudson) C.Agardh, 1817
- Hairy sand weed (NBN Gateway Distribution Map UK)

Cystoseira
Cystoseira baccata (S.G.Gmelin) P.C.Silva, 1952
- Bushy berry wrack

Fucus
Fucus serratus Linnaeus, 1753
- Saw, Saw-edged or Toothed wrack

Laminaria
Laminaria digitata (Hudson) J.V.Lamouroux, 1813
- Oarweed or Tangle
Laminaria hyperborea (Gunnerus) Foslie, 1884
- Tangle or Cuvie
Laminaria ochroleuca Bachelot de la Pylaie, 1824
- A Kelp

Saccharina
Saccharina latissima (Linnaeus) C.E.Lane,
C.Mayes, Druehl & G.W.Saunders, 2006
- Sea belt, Sugar kelp or Sugar tangle

Saccorhiza
Saccorhiza polyschides (Lightfoot) Batters, 1902
- Furbelows or Sea furbelows

Sargassum
Sargassum muticum (Yendo) Fensholt, 1955
- Wireweed or Japweed

Green Seaweed

Ulva
Ulva lactuca Linnaeus, 1753 - Sea lettuce

Red Seaweed

Ceramium
Ceramium virgatum Roth, 1797 - Hornweed
Ceramium species - A Red seaweed

Chondrus
Chondrus crispus Stackhouse, 1797
- Carragheen or Irish moss

Corallina
Corallina officinalis Linnaeus, 1758
- Coral weed or Coralline

Dilsea
Dilsea carnosa (Schmidel) Kuntze, 1898
- Red rags or False dulse

Gastroclonium
Gastroclonium ovatum (Hudson) Papenfuss, 1944
- Egg shaped juice branch weed

Gracilaria
Gracilaria gracilis (Stackhouse) M.Steentoft, L.M.Irvine & W.F.Farnham, 1995 - Slender wart weed

Lomentaria
Lomentaria articulata (Hudson) Lyngbye, 1819
- Jointed pod weed

Mastocarpus
Mastocarpus stellatus (Stackhouse) Guiry, 1984
- False irish moss or Agar weed

Palmaria
Palmaria palmata (Linnaeus) Weber & Mohr, 1805
- Dulse, Dillisk or Crannach

Marine Plants

Zostera
Zostera marina - Common Eel-grass
(NBN Gateway Distribution Map UK)

Stauromedusae can be found on more species of algae than are listed here. More species will be added to this list in the future, but the important species are listed.