This updated and expanded guide thoroughly documents every aspect of seaweed life, from species identification and seaweed biology to the essential--and often surprising--roles seaweed plays in the marine ecosystem and our everyday lives. Seaweeds are used in everything from cosmetics to sustainable biofuels, and some species, like kelp, contribute to the remediation of coastal ecosystems.

Featuring an attractive new full-colour design, the expanded Pacific Seaweeds includes updated species descriptions, dozens of additional colour photos, new species discovered since the original edition, and brand-new sections on common shore plants and the use of DNA techniques to discover, catalog and identify seaweeds. It also features several new recipes and an essay on umami--because in addition to all its other uses, some species of seaweed make delectable food.

Packed with illustrations, vivid colour photographs, comprehensive scientific information and further readings, this easy-to-use guidebook will appeal to marine biologists, amateur beachcombers, gourmet foragers and everyone in between.

Louis Druehl is the editor of The New Bamfielder and Professor Emeritus at Simon Fraser University where he taught and researched kelp for 36 years. His bestseller, Pacific Seaweeds (Harbour Publishing, 2001), introduced thousands to these little-appreciated plants. Louis continues a 40-year relationship with Japanese seaweed researchers. His first novel, Cedar, Salmon and Weed (Granville Island Publishing, 2015) received an Honourable Mention for the Whistler Independent Book Awards 2016. The Kawai Scrolls (Tidewater Press, 2017) is his second novel.

Louis Druehl's profile page

Bridgette Clarkston is a seaweed biologist, science educator and avid photographer with over nine years of teaching and outreach experience. She has worked with initiatives such as Let's Talk Science and the Beaty Biodiversity Museum, as well as the Carl Wieman Science Education Initiative at the University of British Columbia. Clarkston also led a "Seaweeds of the West Coast" field course in Tofino, and has discovered several new species of red seaweed, including one she named Euthora timburtonii.

Bridgette Clarkston's profile page

• Runner-up, National Outdoor Book Award - Nature Guidebooks

"...the book is way beyond a field guide. It has sections on seaweeds in general, explaining their biology, morphology and their place in our universe... I not only like the information packed in this book, I very much enjoyed the writing style... While seaweeds do not have the pizzazz of orchid flowers, fall maples or fly agaric, they are a fascinating group and worthy of study and admiration. This book will help in your hunt for new and old species."
~ Roy John, Canadian Field Naturalist, Vol 130, No 2, 2016

"If you’ve ever wondered about the names of seaweeds that have washed up on shore, this is the guide to reach for. Of the several methods employed by the authors to aid your identification efforts, one of the most clever is the way seaweeds are photographed... What plainly comes through in this book is that the authors are enthusiastic and passionate about these plants of the sea."

National Outdoor Book Awards