Pikea Harvey, 1853
Holotype species: Pikea californica Harvey
Original publication and holotype designation: Harvey, W.H. (1853). Nereis boreali-americana; or, contributions towards a history of the marine algae of the atlantic and pacific coasts of North America. Part II. Rhodospermeae. Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge 5(5): [i-ii], [1]-258, pls XIII-XXXVI.
Request PDFDescription: Uniaxial, terete to compressed, regularly pinnately to subdichotomously branched to five orders. Large axial cell flanked laterally by two or three slightly smaller periaxial and more distal branch cells, surrounded by rhizoids. Cortex of progressively smaller elliptical to spherical cells toward cuticle. Secondary pit connections present. Dioecious. Carpogonium terminating a long, distally recurved, adventitious filament with somewhat enlarged distal cells. Connecting filaments issuing from carpogonial fusion process, contacting a succession of differentiated auxiliary cells occurring near distal ends of separate, occasionally proximally branched, percurrent, adventitious filaments. Two to four gonimoblast filaments arising from remnant of connecting filament attached to auxiliary cell, producing a compact cystocarp that causes the branch bearing it to swell. Most cells maturing into relatively small carposporangia. Gonimoblast fusion cell and carpostome lacking. Spermatangia superficial, cut off by oblique walls. Tetrasporophyte heteromorphic, crustose. Tetrasporangia small, cruciate, attached basally. Monosporangia reported on crust (Scott and Dixon, 1971). Direct life history, circumventing tetrasporophyte, also reported (Chihara, 1972).
Information contributed by: S.C. Lindstrom. The most recent alteration to this page was made on 2017-01-23 by M.D. Guiry.
Taxonomic status: This name is of an entity that is currently accepted taxonomically.
Most recent taxonomic treatment adopted: Kylin, H. (1956). Die Gattungen der Rhodophyceen. pp. i-xv, 1-673, 458 figs. Lund: C.W.K. Gleerups.
Comments: Antiviral activity has been demonstrated (Ehresmann et al., 1977). Distributed in temperate waters of the northern hemisphere: Pacific Ocean: central Japan and Gulf of Alaska to Baja California; Atlantic Ocean: southwestern England (probably introduced, see Maggs and Guiry, 1987).
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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Some of the descriptions included in AlgaeBase were originally from the unpublished Encyclopedia of Algal Genera,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=33202
Citing AlgaeBase
Cite this record as:
M.D. Guiry in Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. 23 January 2017. AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. https://www.algaebase.org; searched on 21 November 2024
