Chnoospora (PROSEA)
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Introduction |
Chnoospora J. Agardh
- Protologue: Övfers. Förh. Kongl. Svenska Vetensk.-Akad. 4: 7 (1847).
- Family: Chnoosporaceae
- Chromosome number: x= unknown
Major species and synonyms
- Chnoospora implexa J. Agardh, Spec. gen. ord. alg. 1: 172 (1848).
- Chnoospora minima (Hering) Papenf., J. S. Afr. Bot. 22: 69 (1956), synonyms: Fucus minimus Hering (1841), Chnoospora pacifica J. Agardh (1847), C. fastigiata J. Agardh (1848).
Origin and geographic distribution
Chnoospora is widely distributed in tropical seas. In South-East Asia both species occur in Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Papua New Guinea. Additional records for C. minima (as C. pacifica) are from Burma (Myanmar) and Malesia. Especially C. implexa is often abundant during the calm and warmest months.
Uses
Chnoospora is used as human food, especially in salads.
Properties
Extracts of C. implexa show slight antimicrobial activity against Streptococcus bacteria.
Description
- Plants of moderate size, attached by discoid holdfast, bushy; branches solid, subterete to compressed; medulla colourless, consisting of large parenchymatous cells; cells decreasing in size towards the surface; cortex of small, pigmented, angular cells, each with one chloroplast with a conspicuous pyrenoid.
- Fertile areas often contiguous or merging, composed of numerous short, crowded, uniseriate or biseriate, filamentous plurilocular zoidangia around tufts of uniseriate, unbranched, colourless hairs in pits.
- Unilocular zoidangia unknown.
- C. implexa. Thalli erect, up to 20 cm tall, laxly branched, somewhat cushion-like, dark brown to yellowish-brown; branching irregularly alternate-dichotomous, forming wide angles (about 90°) and rounded axils; branches terete, abruptly decreasing in diameter and length from the primary axes to the terminal branchlets; the apical ones finer, distinctly bifurcate and attenuate.
- C. minima. Thalli erect, about 20-25 cm tall, more or less regularly dichotomously branched and not entangled, yellowish-brown; branches about 1 mm broad, subcylindrical, compressed at the joints, with numerous tufts of colourless hairs arising from superficial depressions; ultimate branchlets short with acute apices.
Growth and development
The life cycle of Chnoospora is not yet fully understood, although it is known that the plurilocular zoidangia produce swarmers which can develop parthenogenetically into filamentous and disciform germlings. In turn these discs can form upright parenchymatous macrothalli again.
Ecology
C. implexa occurs in the subtidal zone, attached to solid substrate on portions of reef flat just submerged at low tide which are exposed to moderate water movement. It is abundant during the summer months when it may form blooms closely associated with other species. C. minima occurs on intertidal rocks that are permanently wetted by wave action. In stormy seasons only small thalli and discs of this perennial alga survive, able to form new populations in quieter seasons.
Propagation and planting
No phycoculture of Chnoospora is known.
Harvesting
Chnoospora is only hand-collected from natural populations for direct local use.
Handling after harvest
Chnoospora is sold and used fresh.
Prospects
As long as Chnoospora spp. remain abundant along the coasts in the summer months they will be used as an ingredient in salad dishes.
Literature
- Fotos, S.S., 1981. Observations on Chnoospora minima (Hering) Papenfuss (Phaeophyta, Scytosiphonales) in the field and in culture. Japanese Journal of Phycology 29: 101-108.
Sources of illustration
Schnetter, R., 1976. Marine Algen der Karibischen Küsten von Kolumbien. 1. Phaeophyceae [Marine algae of the Caribbean coasts of Colombia. 1. Phycophyceae]. Bibliotheca Phycologia 24. J. Cramer, Vaduz, Lichtenstein. Plate 4, p. 105. Redrawn and adapted by P. Verheij-Hayes.
Authors
- G.C. Trono Jr
