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Chlorophyll pigments in the seaweed are what gives this group of algae their beautiful green color. Chlorophyll a and b absorb the red light which is available in shallow waters, but not in deeper water. Because of this, green seaweeds are most plentiful in the shallow intertidal zone. They exhibit poor diversity in temperate oceans, but flourish in wamer waters.
The physical structure of green seaweeds can range from single-celled forms to multi-cellular sheets, to branched filaments.
Humans find some species of green algae such as Ulva (sea lettuce) and Enteromorpha (green string lettuce) very tasty and use them as food products.
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