202 first Annual Report 
Nereocystis gigantea 
(Figure 110) 
Occasionally found growing at Laguna in from four to six 
fathoms of water. This immense ‘‘bladder kelp’’ attracts a great 
deal of attention from visitors to the beach. The long, slender stems 
below the bladder often measure as much as thirty feet in length, 
Figure 115. Endocladia muricata (P. & R.) J. Ag. 
Figure 116. Laurencia virgata. Habit sketch. 
with a holdfast below which may be as large as a bushel basket, and 
the great ‘‘leaves’’?’ may measure twelve feet in length. In the 
extensive beds of Macrocystis just off shore, they may be loeated by 
the fact that the large hollow bladders are commonly used as perches 
by the sea-gulls. The name ‘‘Nereocystis gigantea’’ may not be its 
correct name, but it is certainly an apt one, although it does not 
