chlorophyte
Chlorophyta or Prasinophyta is a taxon of green algae informally called chlorophytes. The name is used in two very different senses, so care is needed to determine the use by a particular author. In older classification systems, it refers to a ...
Trentepohliaceae
Trentepohliaceae are a family of green algae in the order Trentepohliales.See the NCBI
The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is part of the United States National Library of Medicine (NLM), a branch of the National Instit ...
, living free on terrestrial supports such as tree trunks and wet rocks or
symbiotically
Symbiosis (from Greek , , "living together", from , , "together", and , bíōsis, "living") is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or parasit ...
in lichens. The filaments of ''Trentepohlia'' have a strong orange colour (photograph at right) caused by the presence of large quantities of
carotenoid
Carotenoids (), also called tetraterpenoids, are yellow, orange, and red organic pigments that are produced by plants and algae, as well as several bacteria, and fungi. Carotenoids give the characteristic color to pumpkins, carrots, parsnips, ...
pigments which mask the green of the
chlorophyll
Chlorophyll (also chlorophyl) is any of several related green pigments found in cyanobacteria and in the chloroplasts of algae and plants. Its name is derived from the Greek words , ("pale green") and , ("leaf"). Chlorophyll allow plants to ...
.
''Trentepohlia'' species form associations with fungal hyphae, and are widespread
phycobiont
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.crustose lichen genera '' Graphis'', '' Graphina'', ''
Gyalecta
''Gyalecta'' is a genus of fungi in the family Gyalectaceae that contains 50 species. ''Gyalecta'' was circumscribed by lichenologist Erik Acharius in 1808.
Selected species
*'' Gyalecta ancistrospora''
*'' Gyalecta arbuti''
*'' Gyalecta azore ...
'' and '' Opegrapha''.F.S. Dobson (2000) Lichens, an illustrated guide to the British and Irish species. Richmond publishing Co. T. Friedl and B. Büdel (1996) Photobionts, in Nash, T.H. (ed.) Lichen biology, pp.8-23, Cambridge University Press.
There are about 40 species of ''Trentepohlia'' mostly distributed in tropical and subtropical areas but several species also occur in temperate environments including
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
and Ireland. The genus is present in almost all continents.
The genus was circumscribed by
Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius
Carl Friedrich Philipp (Karl Friedrich Philipp) von Martius (17 April 1794 – 13 December 1868) was a German botanist and explorer.
Life
Martius was born at Erlangen, the son of Prof Ernst Wilhelm Martius, court apothecary.
He graduated PhD f ...
in Fl. Crypt. Erlang. on page 351 in 1817.
The genus name of ''Trentepohlia'' is in honour of Johann Friedrich Trentepohl (1748–1806), who was a German clergyman and
botanist
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...
. He worked as a lecturer and Pastor in various places in Wesermarsch.
Gallery
Image:Trentepohlia aurea 130408.jpg, '' Trentepohlia aurea'', Tauberland, Germany
File:Trentepohlia on Cypress (909757965).jpg, ''Trentepohlia aurea'' var. ''polycarpa'' grows prolifically on
Monterey Cypress
''Hesperocyparis macrocarpa'' is a coniferous tree. It is commonly known as the Monterey cypress and is one of several species of cypress trees endemic to California.
The Monterey cypress is found naturally only on the Central Coast of Califor ...
trees at
Point Lobos
Point Lobos and the Point Lobos State Natural Reserve is a state park in California. Adjoining Point Lobos is "one of the richest marine habitats in California." The ocean habitat is protected by two marine protected areas, the Point Lobos Sta ...
, California
Chaetophoraandothergenera Trentepholia.jpg, Illustration