Gracilaria parvispora (ogo) Click on pictures for larger images
Gracilaria parvispora, or ogo, is one of the most popular edible
seaweeds in Hawai`i. This red alga has become quite rare, and
reproductive plants are protected Herbarium sheets of Gracilaria
parvispora showing morphological variation from other sheet.
Gracilaria parvispora has solid, commonly compressed branches, 1
- 4 mm in diameter, with long narrow, pointed tips. The plant
grows tall, to 30 cm or more, with a single dominant axis, 0.8 -
3.5 mm diameter, usually with 3 orders of branching or, if more,
the last order is short, slender and spine-like. The plant is
often red, but can become light brown, light green, or almost
white in areas of bright sunlight. Can become very dark brown to
almost black in habitats of low water motion or in Gracilaria
spp. are extremely variable in Hawaiian waters. Habitats with
lower water motion and salinity produce bushier, darker plants
with a more dense branching pattern. Medullary cells thick-
walled, cell si