Laminaria is a genus of brown seaweed in the order Laminariales (kelp), comprising 31 species native to the north Atlantic and northern Pacific Oceans. This economically important genus is characterized by long, leathery laminae and relatively large size. Some species are called Devil's apron, due to their shape, or sea colander, due to the perforations present on the lamina. Others are referred to as tangle. Laminaria form a habitat for many fish and invertebrates.

The life cycle of Laminaria has heteromorphic alternation of generations which differs from Fucus. At meiosis the male and female zoospores are produced separately, then germinate into male and female gametophytes. The female egg matures in the oogonium until the male sperm fertilizes it. Life-Cycle: The most apparent form of Laminaria is its sporophyte phase, a structure composed of the holdfast, the stipe, and the blades. While it spends its time predominately in the sporophyte phase, it alternates between the sporophyte and its microscopic gametophyte phase.

Laminaria japonica (J. E. Areschoug – Japón) is now regarded as a synonym of Saccharina japonica and Laminaria saccharina is now classified as Saccharina latissima.

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