Caulerpa racemosa (Green Grape Caulerpa)
The standard for a grape harvest.
What You Get
Green Grape Caulerpa is the classic Caulerpa racemosa form that most reef keepers recognize. Bright green clusters of round, grape like bladders grow along a creeping rhizome, creating a clean, upright look that works well in refugiums and displays alike.
We collect this form from shallow Atlantic Florida waters where it grows in higher light and more exposed habitats. In bright light it sends up taller strands with longer runners. In stronger current and partially shaded areas it tends to stay more compact, with tighter grape clusters hugging the substrate. This listing focuses on the familiar spherical grape form rather than the unusual specialty variants.
Note that pruning and harvesting Grape Caulerpa is essential.
Why It’s Algaesome
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Classic grape look: Bright green, round bladders along a single rhizome give a very tidy, iconic appearance.
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Hardy and popular: A long time favorite for nutrient export and refugium use in marine aquariums.
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Responsive to conditions: Grows taller in strong light, stays compact in higher flow with some shade, so it can be shaped by placement.
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Nutrient export: Helps remove excess nitrates and phosphates when portions are harvested and removed on a regular basis.
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Scaping options: Rhizomes can be anchored in rubble, on rock, or gently buried in sand to create low, grape covered patches or flowing runs.
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Light grazing: Not very palatable to most herbivores, although some fish may nip at the rhizome structure.
Sizing and Availability
Each portion of Green Grape Caulerpa includes several runners totaling about 6 to 10 inches in length, with multiple grape clusters. This standard form is regularly collected in our shallow Atlantic sites, although fullness and exact strand height will vary with season, tide, and local light and flow conditions at the time of collection. It dies back in cooler waters and comes back in abundance in the late-spring / early-summer.
Traits
Color Bright green
Ease Easy; hardy and reliable
Classification Green macroalgae (Caulerpa)
Nutrient Uptake Good to excellent
Availability Regularly collected
Use Refugium and display
Lighting Moderate to bright
Flow Low to strong; more compact in higher flow
Deeper Dive Info:
Caulerpa racemosa taxonomy is a mess, and that is not an exaggeration. This species group is famous for looking completely different from one reef to the next. Light, depth, current, substrate, and even how often it gets disturbed can change its shape. One day you find perfect round grapes... the next you find tiny umbrellas, long cylinders, or something that looks like a bunch of baby bananas.
Because of that natural variety, we separate our offerings into two simple categories that make sense for aquarium keepers.
Standard Green Grape Caulerpa covers the classic bright green form with round, bubble like clusters. This is the “typical” racemosa most hobbyists recognize and the one we consistently find in shallower, brighter habitats.
Specialty Grape Caulerpa includes the oddballs... the flat caps, umbrellas, cylinders, and deeper water shapes that clearly look different from the standard grape form. They are still Caulerpa racemosa, just growing under different environmental pressures.
Scientists have named many subspecies within the racemosa group, but even experts agree that appearance alone is not always enough. True identification often requires microscopic work on cell structure. Rather than guess, we sort our pieces by the way they actually look so you know exactly what you are getting.
A Note from the Collectors:
Every macroalga we offer is hand collected, acclimated, and observed by our team before shipping. While we carefully try to remove other algae, sponges, and tiny hitchhikers, it is possible that a few “goodies” from the reef may tag along... it is a natural part of receiving genuine wild collected specimens.
Caulerpa racemosa can grow enthusiastically in nutrient rich systems. Regular pruning and harvesting help keep the colony under control, support nutrient export, and reduce the chance of a reproductive event sometimes called “going sexual.” Stable lighting, good water quality, and steady conditions all help this species remain a dependable, attractive part of your refugium or display.
Many macroalgae may arrive paler or slightly stressed from transit. This is normal. Under good aquarium lighting and flow, color and vigor usually return within a few days.
We ship via 2 Day service on Mondays and Tuesdays only to help ensure specimens arrive healthy. Tracking information is provided as soon as your order ships.
