CHROMOPHYTA : Cutleriales : CutleriaceaeBROWN ALGAE

Cutleria multifida (J E Smith) Greville


Description: Thallus erect and flattened to 40 cms long. Fan-shaped with linear blades deeply dissected, irregular dichotomous irregular branching to a maximum of 12 mm wide. Fringed with tufts of filaments at the apicies.

Habitat: Epilithic or epizoic in the sublittoral to 10 m.

Distribution: Widespread in the British Isles. Mediterranean, Azores, Portugal, Atlantic coasts of Spain and France, Denmark, Baltic Sea, Sweden Norway and the Faroes. Further afield: the Canary Islands, Red Sea, West Africa, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and regions of the Indo-Pacific.

Similar Species: Dictyota dichotoma is similar but without fringed tufts of filaments and Taonia atomaria is split into wedge-shaped sections.

Key Identification Features:

  • Linear blades deeply split with ends appearing frayed.

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

iNaturalist: Cutleria multifida at iNaturalist World Species Observations database.

WoRMS: Cutleria multifida at World Register of Marine Species.

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 Morton, O., Keatley, L., Morrow, C.C. & Picton, B.E. (2026). Cutleria multifida. (J E Smith) Greville. [In] Encyclopedia of Marine Life of Britain and Ireland.
https://habitas.org/mbdp/species.php?item=ZR3890. Accessed on 2026-11-01