Corallina officinalis on exposed to moderately exposed lower eulittoral rock

Description (English)

Very exposed to moderately exposed lower eulittoral rock that supports a dense turf of the red seaweed Corallina officinalis, often on wave surged rocky slopes. There is usually a low abundance of other turf-forming red seaweeds including Lomentaria articulata, Mastocarpus stellatus, Palmaria palmata and Osmundea pinnatifida. Other seaweeds that occur in low abundance includes the wrack Himanthalia elongata, Laminaria digitata while the brown seaweed Leathesia difformis can be found growing on and around the other seaweeds. The green seaweeds Enteromorpha intestinalis, Ulva lactuca and Cladophora rupestris are present as well. A number of invertebrates are present on the bedrock underneath the coralline turf, including the barnacle Semibalanus balanoides, the mussel Mytilus edulis, the sponges Halichondria panicea and Hymeniacidon perleve, the anemone Actinia equina and the limpets Patella ulyssiponensis and Patella vulgata. The brown seaweed Bifurcaria bifurcata and the barnacle Balanus perforatus may occur in the extreme south-west. Two variants have been described: C. officinalis and kelp (MA1-2321) and C. officinalis, H. elongata and the limpet P. ulyssiponensis (MA1-2322).
Situation: This community usually forms a distinct band just above the kelp zone (MB1-211, MB1-2112 or MB1-2172). It can be found below the barnacle and P. vulgata dominated biotopes (MA1-222; MA1-223; MA1-2232).

Source: EUNIS habitat classification