South African Seaweeds

Order Ulvales

Family Ulvaceae

Ulva clathrata (Roth) C.Agardh 1811: 23

Plants light to dark green, tubular, highly branched, 10-40 cm long and 100 µm to several mm wide, usually with many spiny multiseriate branchlets; attached or in mats. Cells in longitudinal rows, rectangular with rounded corners, in surface view 15-20 µm . Chloroplast discoid in surface view, flattened in side view, containing several pyrenoids.

Collections, ecology and regional distribution

Collected in Knysna Lagoon and Mtakatye Estuary (near Hluleka) (30-45); probably more widespread.

World distribution: reportedly widespread in temperate and tropical waters (Guiry & Guiry 2012).

Notes:

1. Cells in our material somewhat smaller than reported for plants from Britain and Ireland (Maggs et al. in Brodie et al., 2007)

2. Our specimens were originally recorded as Enteromorpha ramulosa (Smith) Carmichael, now considered to be a synonym of Ulva clathrata.

Ulva clathrata, fresh material, Mtakatye Estuary near Hluleka, Transkei

Ulva clathrata, surface detail of fresh material, showing spiny branchlets, Mtakatye Estuary near Hluleka, Transkei

References Ulva clathrata

Agardh, C.A. (1811). Dispositio algarum Sueciae, quam publico examini subjiciunt Carl Adolph Agardh... & Johannes Bruzelius, Scanus. Die xi decembris mdcccxi. p. ii. h. & l.s. pp. Pars 2: [i], 17-26. Lund: Berling.

Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. 2012. AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. http://www.algaebase.org; searched September 2012.

Maggs, C.A., Blomster, J., Mineur, F. & J. Kelly. 2007. Ulvaceae. In Brodie, J., Maggs, C. A. & D, M. John (eds). The green seaweeds of Britain and Ireland. British Phycological Society, 242 pp.

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 18 November 2024.