Scytosiphon lomentaria

Common Name:

Leather tube

Family:

Scytosiphonaceae

Distribution (from Flora of Victoria):

Widespread in temperate and colder waters. In southern Australia, from Cottesloe (WA) to at least Sydney (NSW) and around Tasmania [12]
Map - Australasian Virtual Herbarium

Distribution and ecological preference at Wilsons Promontory (if known):

Characteristic of the lower to mid eulittoral on rocks on rough-water to moderately sheltered coasts ¹

Flower Description:

N/A

Habit:

Brown algae with medium to dark brown thallus erect 5-30 cm high. Terete and hollow and often constricted at intervals of 1-3 cm. Present throughout the year, erect stage mainly during winter and the crustose stage in summer with the erect stage rarely on seasgrasses ¹

Distinguishing characteristics (within family/genus):

The thallus is erect or flattened and 3-20 times as high as broad. It is terete to compressed and hollow ¹

Images:

Links to more images:

Atlas of Living Australia MELU

Links to description of this species:

AlgaeBase

Conservation status:

N/A

References:

¹ Womersley, H. B. S. (1987). “The marine benthic flora of Southern Australia. Rhodophyta. Part II”. ABRS, Canberra.