''Lessonia'' is a genus of large

kelp Kelps are large brown algae seaweeds that make up the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera. Despite its appearance, kelp is not a plant - it is a heterokont, a completely unrelated group of organisms. Kelp grows in "underwat ...

native to the southern

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 ...

. It is restricted to the southern hemisphere and is distributed along the coasts of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, and the Antarctic islands. The genus was first described by

Jean Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent Jean-Baptiste Geneviève Marcellin Bory de Saint-Vincent was a French naturalist, officer and politician. He was born on 6 July 1778 in Agen (Lot-et-Garonne) and died on 22 December 1846 in Paris. Biologist and geographer, he was particularly in ...

in 1825. The genus name of ''Lessonia'' is in honour of

René Primevère Lesson René (''born again'' or ''reborn'' in French) is a common first name in French-speaking, Spanish-speaking, and German-speaking countries. It derives from the Latin name Renatus. René is the masculine form of the name (Renée being the feminine ...

(1794–1849), who was a French

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

, naturalist,

ornithologist Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

, and

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and rept ...

. This is one of two principal genera in

kelp forest Kelp forests are underwater areas with a high density of kelp, which covers a large part of the world's coastlines. Smaller areas of anchored kelp are called kelp beds. They are recognized as one of the most productive and dynamic ecosystems on Ea ...

s (the other is ''

Macrocystis ''Macrocystis'' is a monospecific genus of kelp (large brown algae). This genus contains the largest of all the phaeophyceae or brown algae. ''Macrocystis'' has pneumatocysts at the base of its blades. Sporophytes are perennial and the indiv ...

''). In

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

, the preservation of ''Lessonia'' kelp is an important to help preserve the biodiversity that exists on rocky shores. By studying the harvesting of these wild populations of ''Lessonia'' kelp marine biologists are able to analyze the effects of this activity on wildlife. In New Zealand there are at least four species that belong to this genus. '' L. tholiformis'' is only found on the Chatham Islands. '' L. adamsiae'' is only found on the Snares Islands. Some species are of economic importance, such as ''

Lessonia nigrescens ''Lessonia nigrescens'', the grey weed or giant grey weed, is a South American kelp species in the genus '' Lessonia''. There is at least two populations of the seaweed, marked by the difference in phenolic content. There is a subtidal populatio ...

'', which is harvested for

alginate Alginic acid, also called algin, is a naturally occurring, edible polysaccharide found in brown algae. It is hydrophilic and forms a viscous gum when hydrated. With metals such as sodium and calcium, its salts are known as alginates. Its colou ...

Species

* ''

Lessonia adamsiae Lessonia may refer to: * ''Lessonia'' (alga), a genus in the family Lessoniaceae * ''Lessonia'' (bird), a genus in the family Tyrannidae * ''Lessonia'', a synonym for '' Aglaura,'' a genus of hydrozoans {{genus disambiguation ...

'' * ''

Lessonia brevifolia Lessonia may refer to: * ''Lessonia'' (alga), a genus in the family Lessoniaceae * ''Lessonia'' (bird), a genus in the family Tyrannidae * ''Lessonia'', a synonym for '' Aglaura,'' a genus of hydrozoans {{genus disambiguation ...

'' * '' Lessonia corrugata'' * '' Lessonia frutescens'' * ''

'' * '' Lessonia searlesiana'' * ''

Lessonia tholiformis Lessonia may refer to: * ''Lessonia'' (alga), a genus in the family Lessoniaceae * ''Lessonia'' (bird), a genus in the family Tyrannidae * ''Lessonia'', a synonym for '' Aglaura,'' a genus of hydrozoans {{genus disambiguation ...

'' * ''

Lessonia trabeculata ''Lessonia trabeculata'' is a species of kelp, a brown alga in the genus '' Lessonia''. It grows subtidally off the coasts of Peru and northern and central Chile, with the closely related '' Lessonia nigrescens'' tending to form a separate zone i ...

'' * '' Lessonia vadosa'' * ''

Lessonia variegata Lessonia may refer to: * ''Lessonia'' (alga), a genus in the family Lessoniaceae * ''Lessonia'' (bird), a genus in the family Tyrannidae * ''Lessonia'', a synonym for '' Aglaura,'' a genus of hydrozoans {{genus disambiguation ...

References

Laminariales genera {{Phaeophyceae-stub