BOTANY3 Laboratory Hand-out

Exercise 4. Direct Ancestors of Plants: Green Pigmented Algae

* Green pigmented algae – have chl a and b as well as xanthophyll and carotene
* Divisions Euglenophyta and Chlorophyta are polyphyletic.

I. Division Euglenophyta
- Class Euglenophyceae
- Having both animal- and plant-like characteristics
- Euglena
- Motile, unicellular, lack cell wall, w/ tinseled and
whiplash flagella arising from the reservoir
- Characteristic movement = metaboly
- With chloroplasts – plant-like
- Reproduced asexually by longitudinal fission
- Can have encysted or palmelloid phase
- stored food material is paramylon stored in
paramylon bodies
- other structures of Euglena: pellicle surrounding the
plasmalemma , stigma/eyespot and contractile vacuole

II. Division Chlorophyta

- with cellulosic cell wall, starch as stored food
- 3 Evolutionary lines
 Common ancestor is unicellular, flagellated, photoautotrophic organism
 Volvocine – both somatic and reproductive cells are flagellated; unicellular to
colonial forms
 Tetrasporine – only the reproductive cells are flagellated; cell division w/
cytokinesis of somatic cells is retained forming septated filaments and thalli
 Chlorococcine - only the reproductive cells are flagellated; somatic cells
exhibiting cell division w/o cytokinesis forming coenocytic filaments and thalli

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BOTANY3 Laboratory Hand-out

- 3 Classes:
 Class Ulvophyceae
o Having coenocytic filaments and thalli
o Exhibiting sporic and gametic meiosis
o Mostly marine
o Cytokinesis is via cell furrowing
o Representative species:
o Ulva – tetrasporine line; sheet-like thallus w/c is distromatic (having
only two layers of parenchyma-like tissue)
o Unicellular Ulvophyceans – chlorococcine line
- Valonia – multinucleated
- Acetabularia – uninucleated
o Thallus-forming; macroalgae under chlorococcine line; having utricle
- Codium – cellulosic cell wall
- Caulerpa – cellulosic cell wall; plant-like habit
- Halimeda – calcareous cell wall
o Cladophora – filamentous; dichotomously branching; reticulated
chloroplast

A B C

D E F

G H

Ulva (A), Valonia (arrow) (B), Acetabularia (C), Codium (D),

Caulerpa (E), Halimeda (F), x-section of Codium showing utricle (G) and Cladophora (H).

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 Class Chlorophyceae
 Mostly freshwater
 Unicellular to multicellular
 Producing zygospore
 Zygotic meiosis; haplontic life cycle
 Have phycoplast
 Representative species:
o Chlamydomonas – volvocine line; unicellular; biflagellated
o Volvox – volvocine line; colonial; biflagellated
o Oedogonium – tetrasporine line; filamentous, macrandrous,
heterothallic
o Ulothrix – tetrasporine line; filamentous, macrandrous, homothallic
o Chlorella – tetrasporine line; unicellular

A B

D E

Volvox (A), Oedogonium (B) and its life cycle (C), Ulothrix (D) and Chlorella (E).

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BOTANY3 Laboratory Hand-out

 Class Charophyceae
 Mostly freshwater
 Mostly from tetrasporine line
 With phragmoplast
 Representative species:
o Spirogyra – filamentous; spirally-arranged chloroplast;
fragmentation; conjugation
o Desmids – Unicellular representatives
 Cosmarium – spherical
 Closterium – elongated
o Chara - Thallus-forming; calcareous cell wall; plant-like habit

B C

Spirogyra (A), Cosmarium (B) and Closterium (C)

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BOTANY3 Laboratory Hand-out

A B

Habit of Chara (A), its fructification stage (B) and life cycle (C).

Differences between phragmoplast, phycoplast and cleavage furrow formation.

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