Divers exploring the seabed off Odesa’s Cape Bolshoi Fontan came across something unexpected: Chorda tomentosa, a brown macroalga native to the icy waters of the Arctic and North Atlantic, thriving 5–8 meters deep in these far warmer waters. This wasn’t a lone drifter — a full, patchy population was documented, with thalli stretching up to 85 cm and forming dense “rosettes” across the seafloor.What makes this remarkable? This species — and its entire taxonomic order, Laminariales — had never been recorded anywhere in the Black Sea before. Its natural range lies far to the north, making this the southernmost point ever documented for the species. The alga’s unusually “hairy,” fibril-covered structure seems perfectly tuned to exploit local nutrient levels, hinting at how shifting sea conditions can quietly redraw the map of who lives where along our coasts. https://algaehub.org/resources/finding-of-alien-brown-macroalgae-chorda-tomentosa-lyngb-in-the-ukrainian-black-sea-coast/

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Finding of alien brown macroalgae Chorda tomentosa Lyngb. in the Ukrainian Black Sea coast

In 2015, scientists made an unexpected discovery near the coast of Odesa in the Black Sea — a species of brown seaweed called Chorda tomentosa that had never been seen in this region before. This algae is usually found in … Continue reading