Chlorophyll b is also an important type of chlorophyll, but unlike chlorophyll a, it is not vital to photosynthesis. Chlorophyll b is found in green algae and certain plants, it is yellow green. Chlorophyll b absorbs light of a different wavelength than chlorophyll a, but ultimately transfers it to chlorophyll a for conversion into chemical energy. Chlorophyll c is only found in photosynthetic Chromista and Dinoflagellates. Another class of pigments are the carotenoids.
Carotenoids are typically yellow, orange, or red pigments.
Carotenoids do not dissolve in water due to their two six carbon rings which are connected by a chain of carbon atoms. Carotenoids are accessory pigments, they cannot transfer the energy absorbed from the sun into photosynthetic pathways, instead they must give the energy to chlorophyll a. The third class of pigments are the phycobilins. Phycobilins are water-soluble and are found in the stroma or cytoplasm of the chloroplast. This last class of pigments is only found in the marine organisms Cyanobacteria and Rhodophyta.