Colpomenia sinuosa (Mertens ex Roth) Derbe’s & Solier 1851


Division     Ochrophyta
Class     Phaeophyceae
Order     Ectocarpales
Family    Scytosiphonaceae
Basionym     Ulva sinousa Mertens ex Roth
SynonymStilophora sinuosa (Mertens ex Roth) C. Agardh, Asperococcus sinuosus (Mertens ex Roth) Bory, Asperococcus sinuosus (C.Agardh) Zanardini, Hydroclathrus sinuosus (Mertens) ex Roth) Zanardini, Tremella cerina Clemente, Tremella rugosula Clemente, Stilophora vesicata Harvey, Encoelium vesicatum (Harvey) Kützing, Soranthera leathesiformis P.Crouan & H.Crouan, Colpomenia sinuosa f. typica Setchell & Gardner.

    Thalli hollow, crisp, sessile, saccate or irregularly lobed, 6-10 cm in diameter, attached by rhizoids. Walls of saccate thalli are 0.3- 0.5 mm thick and 4- 6 cell layers; inner cells are colorless, to 240 μm in diameter, and grade into small pigmented surface cells 4-8 μm in diameter. Surface sori are dark, in raised patches, and 1.0- 1.5 mm in diameter. Plurilocular sporangia are biseriate, cylindrical to club – shaped, 4-8 μm in diameter, and 18- 30 μm long. Colorless sterile hairs are 10 μm in diameter, to 50 μm long, and occur on the surface.


Ecology

Lithophytic or epiphytic on various algae at wave exposed intertidal sites.


Distribution in India

Lakshadweep Islands; Lakshadweep (Silva et al., 1996). (Barton, 1903); Dwarka, Bombay (Maharashtra) (Chauhan,1978; Dhargalkar et al.,1980); Tuticorin (Borgesen, 1934); Kurusadai Island (Chacko et al., 1955); Veraval (Subbaramaiah, 1971); Mandapam, (Tamil Nadu) (Kalimuthu et al., 1992; Jayasankar & Ramalingam, 1993).