Melanosiphon M.J.Wynne, 1969

Holotype species: Melanosiphon intestinalis (De A.Saunders) M.J.Wynne

Original publication and holotype designation: Wynne, M.J. (1969). Life history and systematic studies of some Pacific North American Phaeophyceae (brown algae). University of California Publications in Botany 50: 1-88.

Description: Plants simple, cylindrical or somewhat compressed, flaccid, loosely caespitose, up to 10 cm in length, solid when young, later becoming hollow, occasionally twisted. Growth parenchymatous, with single apical cell in the juvenile condition, later becoming diffuse. Medulla composed of large colorless cells which break down at an early stage. Cortex composed of 2-4 layers of small cells. Multicellular assimilatory filaments develop from the cortex, uniseriate but partly forming longitudinal septum. In unilocular sporangial plants, cortical cells give rise to emergent sporangia and multicellular paraphyses. Regeneration of unilocular sporangia from basal cell of emptied sporangia often observed. Unilocular and plurilocular sporangia usually formed on separate thalli similar in the appearance. In plurilocular sporangial plants, cortex becomes locally thickened with plurilocular sporangial sori. Each cells contain a single parietal chloroplast with a prominent pyrenoid. Tanaka and Chihara (1984) showed that Myelophycus and Melanosiphon both have polystichous construction of thalli, consisting of cortical and medullary layer, and forming unilocular and plurilocular sporangia on different isomorphic erect thalli. Accordingly, distinguished from Myelophycus in the presence of longitudinal septa in the paraphyses. Uni-spores normally biflagellated, pear shaped containing one chloroplast with stigma, develop into branched filaments which directly give rise to young erect thalli, which usually form unilocular sporangia again while some form plurilocular sporangia on separate thalli. Widely distributed in cold and temperate area of Pacific Ocean. Unilocular sporangial plants common, plurilocular ones rare. Erect thalli annual.

Information contributed by: H. Kawai. The most recent alteration to this page was made on 2022-08-12 by M.D. Guiry.

Taxonomic status: This name is of an entity that is currently accepted taxonomically.

Gender: This genus name is currently treated as masculine.

Most recent taxonomic treatment adopted: SantiaƱez, W.J.E. (2018). Taxonomic and molecular phylogenetic studies in the Scytosiphonaceae (Ectocarpales, Phaeophyceae) Dissertation. pp. [1]-120. Sapporo: Department of Natural History Sciences Graduate School of Science Hokkaido University.

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Contributors
Some of the descriptions included in AlgaeBase were originally from the unpublished Encyclopedia of Algal Genera, organised in the 1990s by Dr Bruce Parker on behalf of the Phycological Society of America (PSA) and intended to be published in CD format. These AlgaeBase descriptions are now being continually updated, and each current contributor is identified above. The PSA and AlgaeBase warmly acknowledge the generosity of all past and present contributors and particularly the work of Dr Parker.

Descriptions of chrysophyte genera were subsequently published in J. Kristiansen & H.R. Preisig (eds.). 2001. Encyclopedia of Chrysophyte Genera. Bibliotheca Phycologica 110: 1-260.

Linking to this page: https://www.algaebase.org/search/genus/detail/?genus_id=33369

Citing AlgaeBase
Cite this record as:
M.D. Guiry in Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. 12 August 2022. AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. https://www.algaebase.org; searched on 29 March 2024

 
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