Halophila

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title: "Halophila" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["halophila", "hydrocharitaceae-genera"] description: "Genus of aquatic plants" topic_path: "general/halophila" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halophila" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Genus of aquatic plants ::

|name = Tape-grasses |image = H. engelmannii picture.jpg |image_alt = Image showing multiple shoots of H. engelmanni which are green seagrasses that have blades arranged in a star-like shape. They are short and low to the substrate with thin stems |image_caption = Halophila engelmannii – Star Grass. Picture taken in Florida's Gulf Coast. |taxon = Halophila |authority = Thouars |subdivision_ranks = Species |subdivision = |synonyms_ref = |synonyms =

• Barkania Ehrenb.
• Lemnopsis Zipp. ex Zoll.

Halophila is a genus of seagrasses in the family Hydrocharitaceae, the tape-grasses. It was described as a genus in 1806. The number of its contained species, and its own placement in the order Alismatales, has evolved.

Description

These oceanic herbs grow underwater and have creeping stoloniferous stems and leafy nodes. Unlike other seagrasses, the leaves of some species of Halophila do not have basal sheaths (i.e. the bases of the leaves do not wrap around the stem to form a sheath).

The flowers are unisexual. The male flowers are borne on stems. The parts occur in multiples of three along a single row.

The female flowers do not have stalks. They are divided into three segments. The single chambered ovary has a long beak. The three style are long and simple. The ovules are attached on top of three placentas.

The fruit is included in the bract surrounding the inflorescence (the spathe) and crowned by a beak. They have many seeds and thick embryos.

Distribution

This genus is widespread in tropical waters, the distribution range also extends to subtropical and temperate waters primarily the Indian and Pacific Oceans but also the Mediterranean and Caribbean Seas and the Gulf of Mexico. It is found growing off the coasts of Africa, India, Australia and the Pacific Islands.

Naming

The Latin specific epithet halophila refers to salt loving.

Species

Species accepted by the Kew Botanical Garden.

• Halophila australis - southern Australia
• Halophila baillonii - Caribbean, North and South America
• Halophila beccarii - South + East + Southeast Asia
• Halophila capricorni - New Caledonia, islands in Coral Sea
• Halophila decipiens - shores of Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean; Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico
• Halophila engelmannii - Mexico, Costa Rica, Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, United States (PR, FL, LA, TX)
• Halophila gaudichaudii - Indian Ocean, western Pacific
• Halophila hawaiiana - Hawaii
• Halophila major - Japan, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, Caroline Is, Sri Lanka
• Halophila mikii - Japan
• Halophila minor - Indian Ocean, western Pacific
• Halophila nipponica (syn. Halophila japonica)- Korea, Japan
• Halophila okinawensis - Nansei-shoto
• Halophila ovalis - Red Sea, Indian Ocean, western Pacific
• Halophila spinulosa - Southeast Asia, North Australia, New Guinea
• Halophila stipulacea - Red Sea, Indian Ocean, invasive in the Caribbean
• Halophila sulawesii - Sulawesi
• Halophila tricostata - Queensland

References

References

1. Louis-Marie Aubert du Petit-Thouars 1806. Genera Nova Madagascariensia 2
2. Phillips, Edwin Percy. (1951). "The genera of South African flowering plants". Government Printer.
3. [http://myfwc.com/research/habitat/seagrasses/information/gallery/halophila-engelmannii-star-grass/ ''Halophila engelmannii'' star grass] {{Webarchive. link. (2015-09-12 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Retrieved 2012-01-28.)
4. "World Checklist of Selected Plant Families: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew".
5. Stearn, William. (1972). "A Gardenerer's Dictionary of Plant Names". Cassell.

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