Thalassia testudinum is a perennial grass growing from a long, jointed rhizome. The rhizome is buried in the substrate 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 in) deep, exceptionally down to 25 centimetres (9.8 in). Some nodes are leafless but others bear a tuft of several erect, linear leaf blades.

Average leaf growth rates are 3-4 mm/leaf/day but can be as high as 12 mm/leaf/day (nearly 1 inch per day) (Zieman 1975). Turtle Grass is considered a climax species, with a low shoot turnover rate and relatively high sugar reserves stored in the roots (Gallegos et al. 1994).

Turtle grass is the most common of seagrasses off the coast of Florida and throughout the Caribbean. It also occurs in Bermuda, and south from the Gulf of Mexico to Venezuela. The grass blades are flat and ribbon-like, growing to 14 inches (35.5 cm) long and ½ inch (10 mm) wide.

Leaves are similar to those of the wild celery Vallisneria americana, but the tips of the wild celery leaves are pointed.

Jan 1, 2023 · Turtle grass (Thalassia testudinum) is a species of seagrass that is extremely important for a number of reasons such as stabilizing seabeds, maintaining water quality and providing habitat and food for many marine organisms.

Turtle Grass (Thalassia testudinum) is a marine seagrass species found primarily in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. It plays a crucial role in coastal ecosystems by providing habitat, food, and nursery grounds for a variety of marine …

Small clusters of blades grow from rhizomes buried in 2 to 4 inches of substrate. Blades can grow up to 1 foot in height and less than 1 inch wide. Produces large, pale green to pale pink flowers that produce prominent seed pods which often wash ashore. Native throughout the …

Two of the most abundant seagrasses in Florida include Thalassiatestudinum (turtle grass) and Syringodium filliforme (manatee grass), yet there is little data on the composition of the microbiome of these two genera.

Thalassia testudinum (turtle grass) is the dominant and climax-successional seagrass species in the subtropical/tropical Atlantic and Caribbean region.

Development of foliage and scale leaf in Thalassia is fundamentally identical, despite their pronounced morphological differences. The leaf primordium is at first only three layered, with the two outer layers continuous with, and derived from, the outermost tunica layer of the shoot apex.