''Polysiphonia brodiei'' (Dillwyn) Sprengel, now generally spelled "brodiaei", as it is named after James BrodieHardy, F.G. and Guiry, M.D. 2003. ''A check-list and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland''. p 26. The British Phycological Society. is a species of red algae in the

Rhodophyta Red algae, or Rhodophyta (, ; ), make up one of the oldest groups of eukaryotic algae. The Rhodophyta comprises one of the largest phyla of algae, containing over 7,000 recognized species within over 900 genera amidst ongoing taxonomic revisions. ...

. It grows in tufts up to 36 cm long.Maggs, C.A. 1993. ''Seaweeds of the British Isles. Volume 1. Rhodophyta Part 3A Ceramiales.'' The Natural History Museum, London.

Description

''Polysiphonia brodiaei'' is a dark brownish purple algaeHarvey,W.H. 1841. ''A Manual of The British Algae.'' John van Voorst. growing as tufts consisting of branched of axial cells surrounded by 6 - 8 periaxial cells all of the same length. These branches become corticated near the base. Trichoblasts form near the tip and branches develop from their axils. It grows to 36 cm long in dense tufts.

Reproduction

The plants are dioecious, Spermatangial branchlets are borne near the tips of the branches. Cystocarps with a wide ostiole develop and Tetrasporangia appear as a spiral in the branches.

Habitat

Common in the intertidal zone.

Distribution

This species is recorded from all around the

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

, except in the east of England, including the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

and the

Shetland Isles Shetland (until 1975 spelled Zetland), also called the Shetland Islands, is an archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands, and Norway, marking the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the ...

. In

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

the species is found From

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

, the Atlantic coast of Canada and also on the Pacific coast of North America and in Australia and New Zealand.

References

Rhodomelaceae {{rhodophyta-stub