Zostera noltii - dwarf eelgrass

	DISSEMINATION

Kingdom	Plantae
Sub Kingdom	Tracheobionta (vascular plant)
Superdivision	Spermatophyta (seed plant)
Division	Magnoliophyta (flowering plant)
Class	Liliopsida (monocotyledon)
Order	Potamogetonales
Family	Zosteraceae
Genus	*Zostera*
Species	*noltii*
Classification	Hornem.
Common Name	dwarf eelgrass

Geographic Range	European Atlantic coasts, British Isles. Limited to brackish areas and to estuaries in the Mediterranean and in the Black Sea. It is found in the Caspian Sea and in the Aral lake.
Physical Characteristics	it is characterised by ribbon-like leaves, 1-2 millimeters broad, 10-40 centimeters long and with a very visible midrib. It has a light, not very stout, branched rhizome, with short and scarce, adventitious roots. Flowers are wrapped by a leaf sheath, they are small and not very eye-catching: both calyx and corolla may be missing. It flowers from May to August. The tips of the leaves are obtuse, serrate, often asymmetrical and become indented in the oldest leaves. Leaves shoot from a creeping rhizome; they are born in groups of 2-5 inserted in short sheath. Seeds are smooth, white and 1.5-2 millimeters long. Leaves and rhizomes contain aerial spaces that keep leaves erected when they are submerged.
Notes	it grows in dense beds or meadows on intertidal mud or fine sand in the itertidal. It is particularly abundant between mean high water neaps and mean low water neaps. Its upper and lower limits shift with decreasing salinity, and in brackish waters it may become permanently submerged.
Habitat	it is commonly found in shallow lagoon and sea beds of the Mediterranean area and of the Adriatic.

Sources
References	Flora e vegetazione delle barene - di N. Anoè, D. Calzavara, L. Salviato - Società Veneziana di Scienze Naturali sito MarLIN - The Marine Life Information Network for Britain & Ireland.
Web References	http://www.istitutoveneto.it/venezia/documenti/altri_elaborati/libro_vegetazione.pdf http://www.marlin.ac.uk/
Source of the photo	http://www.marlin.ac.uk/