''Bifurcaria'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

brown algae Brown algae (singular: alga), comprising the class Phaeophyceae, are a large group of multicellular algae, including many seaweeds located in colder waters within the Northern Hemisphere. Brown algae are the major seaweeds of the temperate and po ...

seaweed Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of '' Rhodophyta'' (red), ''Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ''Chlorophyta'' (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as ...

s found on rocky

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

n and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an shores and tidepools of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. One species is also found on the shores of the Galapagos Islands in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

Species

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Bifurcaria bifurcata ''Bifurcaria'' is a genus of brown algae seaweeds found on rocky North American and European shores and tidepools of the Atlantic Ocean. One species is also found on the shores of the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean. Species *''Bifurca ...

'' *''

Bifurcaria galapagensis ''Bifurcaria'' is a genus of brown algae seaweeds found on rocky North American and European shores and tidepools of the Atlantic Ocean. One species is also found on the shores of the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific, Pacific Ocean. Species *' ...

'' *''

Bifurcaria rotunda ''Bifurcaria'' is a genus of brown algae seaweeds found on rocky North American and European shores and tidepools of the Atlantic Ocean. One species is also found on the shores of the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean. Species *''Bifurca ...

Uses

''Bifurcaria'' is a source of unique diterpenoids which may prove pharmaceutically beneficial. In one preliminary study, an extract of Bifurcaria bifurcata halted the proliferation of cancer cells.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4904821 Fucales Fucales genera