The purpose of this field guide is to serve as an identification and reference tool for educators, students, and the public. This book is intended for use in the field and the classroom. Included herein is a set of photographs and descriptions of algal species commonly found along the coast of Santa Barbara. Although we tried to include the most commonly found species, not all known species are included.

All seaweeds can be classified into three categories: Red, Green and Brown. The book is organized into these three categories. Within each section the species of algae are listed alphabetically by scientific name. It should be noted that due to specimen quality and exposure, some algae change color or bleach. This most often occurs with red algae, which can appear a variety of colors ranging from green to purple. Confusion may also occur between brown and green specimens, but this is less common.