Caulerpa racemosa is a species of edible green alga, a seaweed in the family Caulerpaceae. It is commonly known as sea grapes (along with the related Caulerpa lentillifera) and is found in many areas of shallow sea around the world. There are a number of different forms and varieties, and one that appeared in the Mediterranean Sea in 1990, which is giving cause for concern as an invasive species.
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
Compounds documented for Caulerpa racemosa across natural-product and food-composition databases — not just the ~150 nutrients on a classic label ("nutritional dark matter").
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Caulerpa racemosa has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
DNA specimens59
Marker genes5
GenBank sequences10
eDNA detections40
Countries18
The DNA barcodea real sequence read deposited for this species
Caulerpa racemosa voucher PSU_KP49A small subunit ribosomal RNA gene, partial sequence; internal transcribed spacer 1 and 5.8S ribosomal RNA gene, complete sequence; and internal transcribed spacer 2, partial sequence
Marker genes sequenced
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
★rbcL3★ITS7★ITS1★ITS2tufA
plant barcodefungal barcodemarker
07Deep time0.01–0 Ma
How far back this lineage goes — and how we know. Everything here is measured in Ma, short for “mega-annum”: millions of years ago. The chart reads left to right like a calendar of the Earth, from the deep past on the left to today at the right edgetop to bottom like a core drilled through the Earth, from the deep past at the top down to today at the bottom.
At a glance
Fossil range0.01–0 Ma Pleistocene, Holocene
Dated fossil finds1
StatusStill living record runs to the present
When this lineage existed
How to read this: the coloured strip along the bottomdown the left is the geological calendar — the standard epochs (Pliocene, Pleistocene…) every museum uses, shown so you can see which chapter of Earth's history this lineage lived in. This lineage is a young one, so the strip is zoomed in to epochs — the finer subdivisions inside a period. The solid bar is the fossil range: the span between the oldest and the youngest fossil that palaeontologists have assigned to Caulerpa racemosa. Above itBeside it, each dot is one dated fossil find — few enough to count, so they are drawn individually rather than as a graph.
median 13.8 m · max 275 m · 913 records with depth
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Coordinate accuracy92% within 1 km
≤100 m 1 416≤1 km 374≤10 km 109>10 km 45
1 944 georeferenced · 1 305 without coordinates
Open the mapobservation + sensor3 249
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Coordinate accuracy48% within 1 km
≤100 m 319≤1 km 360≤10 km 644>10 km 87
1 410 georeferenced · 2 113 without coordinates
Open the institutions mapphysical evidence3 523
Cultivated / Captivenot free-living
A living individual in a botanical garden, zoo or nursery — cultivated or kept, not free-living.
Coordinate accuracy100% within 1 km
≤1 km 317
317 georeferenced · 40 without coordinates
Open the mapnot free-living357
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
10Collections & institutions
Holding institutions43 of 98 geolocated
Institutions and collections holding physical, vouchered specimens of this species — click a row to fly to it on the map.
Institution
Specimens
University of Stellenboschlocation not on record
336
Honolulu, US
214
Bronx, US
200
Kensington, AU
180
BISHlocation not on record
161
MeiseBGlocation not on record
161
Ann Arbor, US
123
James Cook Townsvillelocation not on record
85
Chapel Hill, US
65
Tampa, US
62
GRAlocation not on record
60
Museo Entomologico de Leonlocation not on record
51
LDlocation not on record
49
Durham, US
48
Adelaide, AU
48
Instituto do Meio Ambientelocation not on record
48
Chaguaramas, TT
47
Ciudad de México, MX
41
UFBAlocation not on record
39
Brisbane, AU
38
Hobart, AU
32
Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Sciencelocation not on record
31
Salvador, BR
31
IPA/SPlocation not on record
30
Durham, US
28
Mount Annan, AU
27
Puerto Ayora, EC
23
USP-IBlocation not on record
22
Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, United States National Herbariumlocation not on record
20
San Diego, US
20
GENTlocation not on record
17
Ghent University, Herbariumlocation not on record
16
South Kensington, GB
16
JBRJlocation not on record
16
Auckland, NZ
16
Wellington, NZ
15
Departamento de Sistematica e Ecologialocation not on record
15
UFRPElocation not on record
14
Acadia Universitylocation not on record
13
Australian Institute of Marine Sciencelocation not on record
12
Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Instituto Politécnico Nacionallocation not on record
11
Miami, US
7
HUJIlocation not on record
7
INMAlocation not on record
7
Natick, US
6
UNISANTAlocation not on record
6
FLASlocation not on record
5
Los Angeles, US
5
Cape Town, ZA
5
Mexico City, MX
5
Mutare Museumlocation not on record
5
Institut de Recherche pour le Developpement, New Caledonia, Herbarium of the IRD Noumealocation not on record
4
New Haven, US
4
Universidade Federal do Ceara, Departamento de Biologialocation not on record
4
UFABClocation not on record
4
Canberra, AU
4
Columbia, US
4
Burlington, US
4
Tlalnepantla, MX
3
University of Hawaii at Manoalocation not on record
3
Florida Museum of Natural History- Zoology, Paleontology & Paleobotanylocation not on record
3
Fortaleza, BR
3
WTUlocation not on record
3
UNIVASFlocation not on record
3
DEWlocation not on record
2
Herbario de la Facultad de Ciencias (FCME)location not on record
2
Minia, EG
2
University of Dar es Salaamlocation not on record
2
McWane Science Centerlocation not on record
2
Buenos Aires, AR
2
Corvallis, US
2
Laboratorio de Ecosistemas Marinos y Acuicultura, Centro Universitario de Ciencias Biológicas y Agropecuarias, Universidad de Guadalajaralocation not on record
2
Museo de Historia Natural, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Surlocation not on record
2
Davis, US
2
Centro de Investigación Científica de Yucatán, A. C., Unidad de Ciencias del Agualocation not on record
2
Parkville, AU
1
IFAN Ch. A. Dioplocation not on record
1
UFESlocation not on record
1
South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversitylocation not on record
1
Edinburgh, GB
1
UESBlocation not on record
1
EL PASO, US
1
UNESP-ISlocation not on record
1
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Nortelocation not on record
1
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad del Noreste, A.C.location not on record
1
Champaign, US
1
UIBlocation not on record
1
Muséum National d'Histoire Naturellelocation not on record
1
València, ES
1
Cruz das Almas, BR
1
Arcata, US
1
Universidad de La Salle (La Salle)location not on record
1
Universidad Industrial de Santander (UIS)location not on record
1
Clocation not on record
1
The University and Jepson Herbarialocation not on record
1
Université de Polynésie Française Herbariumlocation not on record
1
Universidad de Málagalocation not on record
1
Cincinnati, US
1
98 institutions · 2 630 of 3 523 vouchered records shown · 412 without an institution code
Cultivated / Captivenot free-living
A living individual in a botanical garden, zoo or nursery — cultivated or kept, not free-living.
09Environmental DNA40 detections
Where the DNA of Caulerpa racemosa was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Detections DNA found40
Studies independent surveys1
Countries7
Signal confidence: weakweighed across independent studies, places & mapped detections
Where its DNA was found
0 of 40 detections have coordinates
Open the map7 countries0
Marine
How strong is each trace?
DNA read depthRead counts were not reported for this species — the map shows presence only, not how strong each trace was.
Modelled climatemodelled
−15°Ctemperature across detection sites+40°C
Temperature median26.4 °C 18.6–26.6
Seasonal swing summer↔winter3.20 °C
Max temp (day)27.4 °C 24.0–30.5
Min temp (night)24.5 °C 12.5–25.8
Precipitation151 mm/mo 21.9–360
Air humidity63.3 % 51.5–63.8
Vapour deficit1,267 Pa 965–1,616
Cloud cover30.7 % 15.2–42.1
CHELSA 1981–2010, ~9 km grid, at location & month of 24 detection points · median with p10–p90 · reflects where sampling happened, not only the true niche
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.
WikipediaWikimedia Foundation5 languages↗
BioWikiNetmultilingual Wikipediamultilingual↗
GBIFGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility5 374 records↗
OBISOcean Biodiversity Information System2 201 records↗
ENAEuropean Nucleotide Archive · EMBL-EBI40 eDNA detections↗
BOLD SystemsCentre for Biodiversity Genomics59 specimens↗
NCBIUS National Library of Medicinesequences↗
LOTUSNatural Products (Wikidata)compounds↗
NPASSNat. Product Activity & Species Sourcecompounds↗
Open Tree of LifeOpenTreephylogeny backbone↗
Paleobiology DatabasePBDB consortiumfossil record↗
GLoBIGlobal Biotic Interactionsbiotic interactions↗