The Characiosiphonaceae are a

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

in the order

Chlamydomonadales Chlamydomonadales, also known as Volvocales, are an order of flagellated or pseudociliated green algae, specifically of the Chlorophyceae.See the NCBIbr>webpage on Chlamydomonadales Data extracted from the Chlamydomonadales can form planar o ...

. Two genera are included in this family, '' Characiosiphon'' and '' Lobocharacium'', each containing a single species. The genus '' Characiochloris'' may eventually be placed in this family pending future revisions, as it is phylogenetically closely related to the twose genera. Algae in the family Characiosiphonaceae are coenocytic, consisting of

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 ...

attached to a substrate. In each coenocyte, there are many separate protoplasms lining a membrane, all surrounding a central sap-filled vacuole. In each protoplasm is a nucleus and a

chloroplast A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle, organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant cell, plant and algae, algal cells. Chloroplasts have a high concentration of chlorophyll pigments which captur ...

surrounding it. Reproduction occurs by fusiform (spindle-shaped)

zoospore A zoospore is a motile asexual spore that uses a flagellum for locomotion in aqueous or moist environments. Also called a swarm spore, these spores are created by some protists, bacteria, and fungi to propagate themselves. Certain zoospores are ...

s and spherical gametes.

References

Chlamydomonadales Chlorophyceae families {{Chlorophyceae-stub