Nereocyctis luetkeana
Color: Brown (Golden or Dark)
Shape: Branching, Tube-like
Texture: Smooth
Size: Up to 100’+
Zone: Subtidal
Range: Alaska to California
Description: This large seaweed begins with a large, branching holdfast supporting a long, hollow stipe that starts narrow and widens at the top, ending in a tennis-ball shaped float. Attached to the float are long, flat blades a few inches wide and up to 30 feet long. The blades are arranged in two groups like pig-tails and tend to trail on the surface of the water.
Edibility: Delicious! The stipe makes tasty pickles. Blades taste salty, but the flavor comes from the high potassium content. Blades are delicate when dried.
Distinctive characteristics: The floats are filled with gas, including the toxic carbon monoxide.
Collection notes: Boat required.
Phylum: Phaeophyta (Brown Algae)
Previous names: Fucus luetkeanus
Similar species: Durvillaea antartica