Ceramium
Encyclopedia
Ceramium is a genus
of red algae in the Rhodophyta. It is a large genus with at least 15 species
in the British Isles
.
surrounded by smaller cells forming a cortex. In most species this a continuous cortex enclosing the axis, in others the cortical cells are arranged only in nodes at the junction of cells of the axesSpecies in the genus show irregular branching and are attached by unicellular or branched rhizoids.
forming spermatangia and carpogonia. The fertilised carpogonium develops growing parasitically attached to the female plant. Tetraspores are born in the cortical bands.
England and Wales: Pembroke, Hampshire, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall, Sussex, Lincoln to Kent, Norfolk also the Channel Isles.
Ireland: Cork, Kery, Clare, Mayo, Waterford, Dublin, Donegal, Atrim and Down.
Europe:
World: Some species are probably cosmopolitan. Widely in norh-west Atlantic, Iceland, Norway to Spain, Denmark, Netherlands, France, Portugal, Mediterranean, Azores, Canary Islands, Cape Verde Islands, USA - Newfoundland to New York, Australia.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of red algae in the Rhodophyta. It is a large genus with at least 15 species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
in the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
.
Description
All species of Ceramium are small algae growing to no more than 30 cm (12 in) in length. They consist of a terete axis of cellsCell (biology)
The cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. It is the smallest unit of life that is classified as a living thing, and is often called the building block of life. The Alberts text discusses how the "cellular building blocks" move to shape developing embryos....
surrounded by smaller cells forming a cortex. In most species this a continuous cortex enclosing the axis, in others the cortical cells are arranged only in nodes at the junction of cells of the axesSpecies in the genus show irregular branching and are attached by unicellular or branched rhizoids.
Reproduction
The species is dioeciousDioecious
Dioecy is the property of a group of biological organisms that have males and females, but not members that have organs of both sexes at the same time. I.e., those whose individual members can usually produce only one type of gamete; each individual organism is thus distinctly female or male...
forming spermatangia and carpogonia. The fertilised carpogonium develops growing parasitically attached to the female plant. Tetraspores are born in the cortical bands.
British Isles
Scotland: Orkney and Faroes, Shetland, Ross and Cromarty, Fife.England and Wales: Pembroke, Hampshire, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall, Sussex, Lincoln to Kent, Norfolk also the Channel Isles.
Ireland: Cork, Kery, Clare, Mayo, Waterford, Dublin, Donegal, Atrim and Down.
Europe:
World: Some species are probably cosmopolitan. Widely in norh-west Atlantic, Iceland, Norway to Spain, Denmark, Netherlands, France, Portugal, Mediterranean, Azores, Canary Islands, Cape Verde Islands, USA - Newfoundland to New York, Australia.
External links
- http://www.mbari.org/staff/conn/botany/reds/Ceramium/index.htm
- http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/ReefAlgae/ceramium.htm
- http:/www.eol.org/pages/904994