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Urospora wormskioldii
Jade Necklace
In situ interactions conducted: 27 May 2021
Fishboat Bay, Juan de Fuca Strait, B.C., Canada.
Tide: -0.7 ft tide at 10:18am PDT (measured at Sheringham Point Tidal Station)
Conditions: Calm winds, overcast, some precipitation, 11˚C.
Phase of Moon: Waning Gibbous (approx. 30 hours into this phase at time of collection); (Previous Phase, Full Moon, 26 May 2021 at 4:13am PDT: Next Phase, Third Quarter, 2 June 2021 at 12:24am PDT.)
Figure 1: A view looking down to the algae covered and partially immersed cobbles of Fishboat Bay at low tide. Urospora wormskioldii filaments cover the area with their necklaces of green jade beads and other Ulva species lie beneath. Fishboat Bay, Juan de Fuca Strait, B.C., Canada. May 27, 2021. Photo ID 27355 ©Seaweedwhisperings.com
Person 1:
Exquisite fine beadwork.
Gently swirling appearance of the stems.
Dark greens and brilliant greens creating a gorgeous effect.
Densely-packed but not messy or disheveled.
Has an air of confidence and competence.
What’s beneath is totally hidden.
Threads break easily when tugged.
Need group for strength.
Segmented like a millipede.
Draped over appearance.
Figure 2: A closer view of one cobble that is wrapped in Jade Necklace seaweed. Fishboat Bay, Juan de Fuca Strait, B.C., Canada. May 27, 2021. Photo ID 27356 ©Seaweedwhisperings.com
Figure 3: Urospora wormskioldii – a closer view yet, shows the barrel-shaped cells that are strung together, one by one, forming the slender threads of this green algae. The fact that the cells are so visible is due to the season and their fertile development stage. Fishboat Bay, Juan de Fuca Strait, B.C., Canada. May 27, 2021. Photo ID 27357 ©Seaweedwhisperings.com
Person 2:
Fine threads.
Dark, rich green with lime green beads strung perfectly in graceful lines.
Threads have some elasticity but snap when pulled.
How do you not tangle?
You seem to move in a type of “imperfect harmony” with each other - some go this way, some that, but there’s not a sign of struggle or competition.
Threads of green beads lay one over the other – layered, looped, sometimes parallel trains, all leading where…?
Irrespective of where these strings of jade beads may lead, they seem to effortlessly convey an artistry, a beauty, that is truly striking.
Taste – crunchy, lively – more to it than you’d think!
Viewed from more of a distance and underwater it looks diffuse, not pretty beads in a row any longer, more like soft fuzzy moss-like threads.
Curve gracefully but don’t get “bent out of shape”.
Figure 4: Individual filaments of Jade Necklace are seen on the right side of this photograph as they appear when fully immersed. Fishboat Bay, Juan de Fuca Strait, B.C., Canada. May 27, 2021. Photo ID 27358 ©Seaweedwhisperings.com
Discussion:
It was a special thing to encounter this seaweed. It is strikingly beautiful in its simple design and bold green coloration – a thing of wonder. The day of this Whispering was the first time we had encountered Jade Necklace, and it was everywhere! We had fortunately come to the right habitat, low intertidal cobbles, and at the best possible timing, late spring. Fortune, luck..., fortunate and GOOD luck..., these themes seem to fit well with the energy of this seaweed, too.
There are other “green hair” type algae but in comparison Urospora womskioldii is just so much richer looking – lush, splendid, even magnificent. The common name, Jade Necklace, hints at the level of veneration one might assign to this green algae’s energy. The gemstone, jade, was highly revered by the ancient Maya. It had great spiritual and religious significance. Mayan elite would wear jade pendants and earrings and were always buried with some jade as assurance of suitable passage to the afterlife. To the Chinese, jade is the “stone of heaven’. Upon their birth, babies of some Asian cultures are often gifted bracelets of jade.
So does jade, and indeed Jade Necklace Seaweed, belong with the elite, those at the summit of their society? Or is it the energy that brings the best fortune to whatever level of life one has been gifted?
Possibly, too, is it especially suitable when transitioning realms..., a kind of marker of one’s ‘stature’ that is thought to aid transition to a suitable level in the next realm?
Certainly the ephemeral nature of this spring green algae embodies this trait and hints at the transitory nature of all life, no matter how beautiful or fortunate. And the long chains..., are they representative of these lifetimes connected across time? Is Jade Necklace but a prime example of this expressed in the morphology of a simple green algae...?
Figure 5: A seaweed of small dimensions, Jade Necklace does not however disappoint – it is instead truly quite wonderful to behold. Fishboat Bay, Juan de Fuca Strait, B.C., Canada. May 27, 2021. Photo ID 27359 ©Seaweedwhisperings.com
Biology & Natural History Information:
Description:
Thallus is a dark green, unbranched, uniseriate filament composed of large, barrel-shaped cells. Filaments may reach 30 cm in length. When fertile the cells are visible to the naked eye and the common name arose from this state, as this green algae then does look very much like a necklace of small jade beads.
Habitat:
This annual green seaweed is found on rock, usually cobble, in the low intertidal of semi-exposed habitats.
North Pacific Distribution:
Along the American coastline from the Aleutian Islands, Alaska, to San Luis Obispo County, California; Japan; Russia.
Remarks:
This is a spring ephemeral. The genus name, Urospora, is derived from the Greek meaning “tailed spore” and describes the microscopic stage of the lifecycle of various members of this genus of green algae.
Former name(s): The basionym is Conferva wormskioldii Mertens
Classification:
Phylum: Chlorophyta
Class: Ulvophyceae
Order: Ulotrichales
Family: Ulotrichaceae
Genus: Urospora
Species: Urospora wormskioldii (Mertens) Rosenvinge 1893
Figure 6: Most of the cobbles in the foreground of this picture, especially those that are lowest in the intertidal band are tinged green – they are covered in ‘necklaces of jade’. A few weeks later in the spring or a visit on a slightly higher tide and encountering Urospora wormskioldii would be impossible. Fishboat Bay, Juan de Fuca Strait, B.C., Canada. May 27, 2021. Photo ID 27360 ©Seaweedwhisperings.com
