Dictyotales is a large order in the brown algae (class Phaeophyceae).[1] Members of this order generally prefer warmer waters than other brown algae. One genus in this order is calcareous, Padina, the only calcareous member of this phylum.[2]
Dictyota dominates 70% of the benthos biomass in the Florida Keys reef tract.[3] The successful spread of this alga is due in part to its ability to asexually reproduce from fragments created by "biotic and abiotic disturbances".[3]