The Ulvophyceae or ulvophytes are a class of
green algae
The green algae (singular: green alga) are a group consisting of the Prasinodermophyta and its unnamed sister which contains the Chlorophyta and Charophyta/Streptophyta. The land plants (Embryophytes) have emerged deep in the Charophyte alga as ...
,
distinguished mainly on the basis of
ultrastructural morphology,
life cycle and
molecular phylogenetic
Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...
data.
[Graham LE, Graham JM, Wilcox LW (2009) ''Algae''. 2nd Edition. Benjamin Cummings (Pearson), San Francisco, CA] The
sea lettuce, ''Ulva'', belongs here. Other well-known members include ''
Caulerpa'', ''
Codium'', ''
Acetabularia
''Acetabularia'' is a genus of green algae in the family Polyphysaceae, Typically found in subtropical waters, ''Acetabularia'' is a single-celled organism, but gigantic in size and complex in form, making it an excellent model organism for stu ...
'', ''
Cladophora'', ''
Trentepohlia'' and ''
Monostroma
''Monostroma'' is a genus of marine green algae (seaweed) in the family Monostromataceae. As the name suggests, algae of this genus are monostromatic (single cell layered). ''Monostroma kuroshiense'', an algae of this genus, is commercially cult ...
''.
The Ulvophytes are diverse in their
morphology
Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to:
Disciplines
*Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts
*Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies, ...
and their
habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
. Most are
seaweed
Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of '' Rhodophyta'' (red), ''Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ''Chlorophyta'' (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as ...
s such as those listed above. Others, such as ''
Rhizoclonium
''Rhizoclonium'' is a genus of green algae in the family Cladophoraceae.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 Institut ...
'', ''
Pithophora
''Pithophora'' is a genus of green algae in the family Pithophoraceae.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 Institute ...
'' and some species of ''
Cladophora'' live in fresh water and in some areas are considered
weeds.
Evolution
The origin and early diversification of the Ulvophyceae likely took place in the late
Neoproterozoic.
Although most contemporary ulvophytes are marine macroalgae (
seaweed
Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of '' Rhodophyta'' (red), ''Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ''Chlorophyta'' (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as ...
s),
ancestral ulvophytes may have been freshwater, unicellular green algae. Molecular phylogenetic evidence suggests that macroscopic growth was achieved independently in the various major lineages of Ulvophyceae (
Ulvales-
Ulotrichales
Ulotrichales is an order of green algae in the class Ulvophyceae.See the NCBIbr>webpage on Ulotrichales Data extracted from the
Genera unplaced to family (''incertae sedis''):
*'' Trichosarcina''
Families
* '' Binucleariaceae''
* '' Collins ...
,
Trentepohliales
Trentepohliales is an order (biology), order of Ulvophyceaen green algae.See the National Center for Biotechnology Information, NCBI]webpage on Trentepohliales Data extracted from the
References
External links
Chlorophyta orders
Ulvoph ...
,
Cladophorales,
Bryopsidales and
Dasycladales).
Fossils are rare but there are some good candidates in a mid-Ordovician
lagerstatten.
Current hypothesis on relationships among the main clades of Ulvophyceae
are shown below.
See also
*
List of Ulvophyceae genera
The Ulvophyceae or ulvophytes are a class of green algae, distinguished mainly on the basis of ultrastructural morphology, life cycle and molecular phylogenetic data.Graham LE, Graham JM, Wilcox LW (2009) ''Algae''. 2nd Edition. Benjamin Cummings ...
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q132016
Green algae classes