''Caloglossa'' is a genus of algae in the

Delesseriaceae The Delesseriaceae is a family of about 100 genera of marine red alga. Genera As accepted by AlgaeBase (with amount of species per genus); Subfamily Delesserioideae (124) * Tribe Botryocarpeae (12) **''Botryocarpa'' Greville - 1 sp. **''Hemin ...

Description

''Caloglossa'' has

thalli Thallus (: thalli), from Latinized Greek (), meaning "a green shoot" or "twig", is the vegetative tissue of some organisms in diverse groups such as algae, fungi, some liverworts, lichens, and the Myxogastria. A thallus usually names the entir ...

that resemble branching leaves. This "exogenous primary branching" differentiates the genus from other members of the Delesseriaceae, other than the closely related genus '' Taenioma''. Species of ''Caloglossa'' are red to brown in color. Each thalli has a conspicuous midrib which is formed by a row of elongated cells. In fresh water, populations spread vegetatively. In

brackish Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuari ...

water, the plants may reproduce sexually.

Distribution

''Caloglossa'' is a common genus worldwide, and is distributed in

littoral The littoral zone, also called litoral or nearshore, is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely i ...

zones from tropical to temperate waters. They can grow in habitats of varying

salinity Salinity () is the saltiness or amount of salt (chemistry), salt dissolved in a body of water, called saline water (see also soil salinity). It is usually measured in g/L or g/kg (grams of salt per liter/kilogram of water; the latter is dimensio ...

, and may be found growing on stones on marine coasts, in brackish estuaries, epiphytically in saltmarsh and

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen a ...

habitat, and in total freshwater areas.

Use

The genus sees use in

aquascaping Aquascaping is the craft of arranging aquatic plants, as well as rocks, stones, cavework, or driftwood, in an aesthetically pleasing manner within an aquarium—in effect, gardening under water. Aquascape designs include a number of distinct styl ...

and may be found in the aquarium trade. One species in particular, ''Caloglossa ''

cf. The abbreviation cf. (short for either Latin or , both meaning 'compare') is generally used in writing to refer the reader to other material to make a comparison with the topic being discussed. However some sources offer differing or even contr ...

'' beccarii'', is popular as it exhibits a variety of colors and is easy to cultivate. ''Caloglossa beccarii'' has also been investigated as a potential food item in

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. It was found to have insignificant toxicity while providing a potentially rich nutritional benefit.

Taxonomy

Some authors have considered the

taxon authority In biology, taxonomy () is the scientific study of naming, defining ( circumscribing) and classifying groups of biological organisms based on shared characteristics. Organisms are grouped into taxa (singular: taxon), and these groups are given ...

to be

Jacob Georg Agardh Jacob Georg Agardh (8 December 1813 in Lund, Sweden – 17 January 1901 in Lund, Sweden) was a Swedish botanist, phycologist, and taxonomist. Early life and career He was the son of Carl Adolph Agardh, and from 1854 until 1879 was professor of ...

instead of

Georg Matthias von Martens George Matthias von Martens (12 June 1788, Venice – 24 February 1872, Stuttgart) was a German lawyer, botanist and phycologist. He was the father of zoologist Eduard von Martens (1831-1904). He studied law at the University of Tübingen, where h ...

. King &

Puttock Christopher Francis Puttock (born 1954), often cited as C.F.Puttock, is an Australian botanist and taxonomist who has interests in the Rubiaceae and Asteraceae flowering plant families as well as Pteridophyta (ferns) and Rhodophyta (red algae ...

(1994) argued that Martens did not formally elevate ''Caloglossa'' to genus rank in his 1869 publication, preferring to follow Agardh's 1876 treatment instead. The diversity of species within ''Caloglossa'' has been heavily studied and subject to much revision. A mix of morphological and DNA analysis has informed researchers on the phylogeny of the genus. As of 2024, are 22 species recognized by

AlgaeBase AlgaeBase is a global species database of information on all groups of algae, both seaweed, marine and freshwater algae, freshwater, as well as sea-grass. History AlgaeBase began in March 1996, founded by Michael D. Guiry, Michael Guiry. Text ...

. *'' Caloglossa adhaerens'' *'' Caloglossa apicula'' *'' Caloglossa apomeiotica'' *'' Caloglossa beccarii'' *'' Caloglossa bengalensis'' *'' Caloglossa confusa'' *'' Caloglossa continua'' *'' Caloglossa fluviatilis'' *'' Caloglossa fonticola'' *'' Caloglossa intermedia'' *'' Caloglossa kamiyana'' *'' Caloglossa leprieurii'' *'' Caloglossa manaticola'' *'' Caloglossa monosticha'' *'' Caloglossa ogasawaraensis'' *'' Caloglossa postiae'' *'' Caloglossa rotundata'' *'' Caloglossa ruetzleri'' *'' Caloglossa saigonensis'' *'' Caloglossa stipitata'' *'' Caloglossa triclada'' *'' Caloglossa vieillardii''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q20829152 Delesseriaceae Edible algae Red algae genera Aquarium plants Taxa described in 1869