Torrey’s Surfgrass, Phyllospadix torreyi

Torrey’s Surfgrass, Phyllospadix torreyi. Underwater photograph taken in coastal waters off La Jolla, California, October 2025. Photograph and identification of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.

Torrey’s Surfgrass Underwater photograph taken in coastal waters off La Jolla, California, September 2019. Photograph and identification of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.

Phylogeny: Torrey’s Surfgrass, Phyllospadix torreyi (S. Watson, 1879), is a member of the Zosteraceae Family of Seagrasses. Plants in the Zosteracea Family are perennial flowering marine plants. The Phyllospadix Genus is one of two genera in the Zosteracea Family. There are seven species in this genus. The genus name Phyllospadix comes from the Greek and means “leaf spathe” or “leaf spadix”. A spathe is a flower bearing structure on female plants and a spadix is a male flower stucture.

Morphology: Torrey’s Surfgrass is an angiosperm and not an algae. It has true leaves, stems, and roots. The hair-like leaves are very long and thin. They are oval in cross section, and not flat like the other sea grasses in the Zosteracea Family. The stems (rhizomes) cling to rocks or may be buried in sand. The rhizomes have thread-like roots attached. The leaves are bright to dark green. The leaves are generally less than 2 mm (0.08 inches) in width and can reach up to 3 m (10 feet) in length. The leaf tips are rounded. The flowers are green and elongate, reaching 4.0 cm (1.5 inches) in length. The similar looking Scouler’s Surfgrass, Phyllospadix scouleri, is also found in much of the same range but has wider (2 to 4 mm (0.08 – 0.16 inches), shorter (to 91 cm (3 feet  0 inches)), flat leaves.

Habitat and Distribution: Torrey’s Surfgrass grows on rocky exposed shoreline in the mid to lower intertidal zone, and to depths of around 15 m (49 feet). It is most common at depths less than 5 m (16 feet). Torrey’s Surfgrass is a temperate to subtropical Eastern Pacific species that is found in Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean north of Isla Santa Margarita, Baja California Sur, along the central and northwest coasts of the Baja Peninsula. Records showing this species in the Sea of Cortez are incorrect and based on confusion between species.

Predators: The leaves of Torrey’s Surfgrass are eaten by limpets, nudibranchs, other gastropods, and fish such as Opaleye, Girella nigricans.  Their seeds are consumed by crabs.

Reproduction: Surf grasses are a true flowering plant and grow as perennials. Adult plants are gonochoric with male and female flowers on different adult plants. They reproduce sexually through flowers, seeds, and pollen, just like most terrestrial plants. Pollen drifting in the water fertilizes the flowers. The seeds grow on reproductive shoots called spathes. The spathes break off and drift with the currents, establishing new colonies. The seeds need to land in a branched algae in order to germinate and get established. Surf grasses can pollinate both underwater and at the surface in sea water. They also reproduce asexually through the elongation of the rhizomes, which maintains established beds.

Ecosystem Interactions: Torrey’s Surfgrass provides shelter and structure for various species of crustaceans, fish, mollusks, and other invertebrates.

Human Interactions: Native tribes used surfgrasses for basketry, fishing line, and as a food source. The entire plants were dried as a cake for eating during the winter. From a conservation perspective, Torrey’s Surfgrass has not been formally evaluatedIt however it is common with a wide distribution and should be considered to be of Least Concern. It is protected by law in many jurisdictions.

Synonyms: None