''Pelagophycus'' is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

genus of

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 "underwa ...

. It is found in deep waters off the west coast of central North America. The species ''Pelagophycus porra'', also known as Elk kelp, grows in temperatures of no higher than . It grows in

subtidal The neritic zone (or sublittoral zone) is the relatively shallow part of the ocean above the drop-off of the continental shelf, approximately in depth. From the point of view of marine biology it forms a relatively stable and well-illuminated ...

forests in the coastal waters off southern

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

and northwestern Baja California Peninsula, in waters of to deep, anchored by a holdfast in sedimentary or loose sediment bottoms.Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. 2013
''Pelagophycus'' Areschoug, 1881
AlgaeBase, National University of Ireland, Galway. http://www.algaebase.org; searched on 7 February 2013. Three

ecotype In evolutionary ecology, an ecotype,Greek: ''οίκος'' = home and ''τύπος'' = type, coined by Göte Turesson in 1922 sometimes called ecospecies, describes a genetically distinct geographic variety, population, or race within a specie ...

s are recognized: :''Pelagophycus giganteus'' :''Pelagophycus porra'' :''Pelagophycus intermedius''

References

Further reading