Mazzaella splendens (common names: splendid iridescent seaweed, rainbow leaf) is a large red seaweed with a thick, undivided blade and a smooth, rubbery texture. Mazzaella splendens is sometimes called "rainbow leaf" because this seaweed often has an irridescent shimmer when wet. The colour of the blade varies, from purple to red or sometimes greenish-yellow. Mazzaella splendens grows attached to rocks from a small round holdfast. This species is fairly common in British Columbia in the low intertidal and subtidal zones of wave exposed to semi-protected habitats. Click the icons above for more images, a life cycle and a peak inside the Beaty Biodiversity Museum’s collections of this species.

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Species of the red seaweed Pyropia are known by many names around the world, including “nori”, “laver”, "purple laver", “zicai” and “black seaweed”. The body of a Pyropia seaweed is a leaf-like blade, often ruffled around the edges, that is almost translucent because it is only one cell thick! Pyropia attaches to rocks or sometimes other seaweeds by a tiny round holdfast. Some Pyropia are red, purple, yellow, dark green or brown, with Pyropia perforata being most often brownish-purple, with small round holes sometimes scattered along the blade. Species of Pyropia can be found in many intertidal habitats, with Pyropia perforata often found attached to rock in the mid intertidal zone. Click the icons above for more images, a life cycle and a peak inside the Beaty Biodiversity Museum’s collections of this species.

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