List of marine aquarium plant species

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Aquatic plants are used to give the aquarium a natural appearance, oxygenate the water, and provide habitat for fish, especially fry (babies) and for invertebrates. Some aquarium fish and invertebrates also eat live plants. Hobby aquarists use aquatic plants for aquascaping.

Marine algae are also included in this list for convenience, despite the fact that many species are technically classified as protists, not plants.

Brown Macroalgae

Common name Image Taxonomy Care Level Growth rate Description Max size
False Sargassum
Cystoseira sp. Moderate Slow 18"
Scroll algae, Potato algae
Padina sp. Expert Slow 6"

Green Macroalgae

Common name Image Taxonomy Care Level Growth rate Description Max size
Chaeto
Chaetomorpha sp. Easy Fast Grows as a tangled mass of green filaments. Not particularly attractive, but this species can serve a useful role as habitat for microinvertibrates and an absorber of excess nitrogen and other nutrients. Often kept in a refugium. 24" mound
Blade caulerpa
Caulerpa prolifera Easy Fast 6"
Grape caulerpa
Caulerpa racemosa Easy Fast 8"
Green calcerous algae
Halimeda sp. Easy to Moderate Moderate 10"
Sawblade caulerpa
Caulerpa serrulata Easy Moderate 5"
Sea lettuce
Ulva lactuca Easy Fast 8" mound

Red Macroalgae

Common name Image Taxonomy Care Level Growth rate Description Max size
Ogo algae
Gracilaria parvispora Easy Moderate 10"
Coralline Algae
Order Corallinales Moderate Slow Ubiquitous in well maintained reef aquaria, this algae forms attractive splotches of color encrusted on live rock. Calcium supplementation encourages good growth of coralline algae species.

Mangroves

Common name Image Taxonomy Care Level Growth rate Description Max size
Black mangrove
Avicennia germinans Moderate Slow 70'
Red mangrove
Rhizophora mangle Easy Slow 80'
White mangrove Laguncularia racemosa Expert Slow 60'

Seagrasses

See also

References

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