RHODOPHYTA : Corallinales : CorallinaceaeRED ALGAE

Corallina officinalis Linnaeus, 1758


Corallina officinalis image: coroff1
Corallina officinalis

Description: Thallus calcareous, articulated, branching from a crustose base to a hight of about 12 cms. Branches pinnate or irregular.

Habitat: Abundant and dominant in some rock pools of the littoral and in the sublittoral to at least 18 m. Epilithic.

Distribution: All around the British Isles. Europe: Azores, Portugal, Spain, Netherlands, Baltic Sea, Norway, Faroes and Iceland. Greenland. Atlantic coasts of North America from Labrador south to Connecticut and Maryland. Further afield: Arctic Sea, Canary Islands and South Africa.

Similar Species: Corallina elongata and Haliptilon squamatum.

Key Identification Features:

  • The most common calcareous alga with articulated fronds.

Distribution Map from NBN: Corallina officinalis at National Biodiversity Network mapping facility, data for UK.

iNaturalist: Corallina officinalis at iNaturalist World Species Observations database.

WoRMS: Corallina officinalis at World Register of Marine Species.

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 Morton, O., Keatley, L., Morrow, C.C. & Picton, B.E. (2026). Corallina officinalis. Linnaeus, 1758. [In] Encyclopedia of Marine Life of Britain and Ireland.
https://habitas.org/mbdp/species.php?item=ZM4040. Accessed on 2026-11-01