Seaweeds of the South African South Coast

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Order Cladophorales

Family Cladophoraceae

Chaetomorpha Kützing

Plants unbranched, filamentous, either erect and attached with an elongate basal cell or forming loose-lying clumps without basal cells. Cells rather thick-walled: chloroplasts parietal, reticulate, usually covering outer surface of protoplast, with several to many pyrenoids. Reproductive cells very similar to vegetative cells, in attached species forming at distal end of filament. Life history with two isomorphic phases. Sixty species are currently recognized, of which 6 are recorded from the South African south coast.

Key to the species

1a. Plants basally attached	2
1b. Plants forming loose clumps or mats or entangled with other algae	4
2a. Plants erect, basal cells very long (to 7.5 mm), annulated near base	C. antennina
2b. Plants erect, basal cell up to 4 mm long, without annulations	3
3a. Basal cell up to 4 mm long, thallus spirally coiled near base	C. spiralis
3b. Basal cell up to 1 mm long, thallus not coiled at the base	C. aerea
4a. Filaments stiff, more than 350 µm in diameter, undulate (wavy)	C. vieillardii
4b. Filaments lax, less than 300 µm in diameter	5
5a. Filaments about 100 µm in diameter, cells 1-3 times as long as broad	C. natalensis
5b. Filaments 250-300 µm in diameter, cells 1-2 times as long as broad	C. linum

 

 

Cite this record as:

Anderson RJ, Stegenga H, Bolton JJ. 2016. Seaweeds of the South African South Coast.
World Wide Web electronic publication, University of Cape Town, http://southafrseaweeds.uct.ac.za; Accessed on 25 April 2024.