Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
Marine Botany

coralline crustcoralline crustcoralline crustcoralline crustcoralline crust

Nongeniculate coralline

Photos: Life Cycle

Note: all pictures are of Melobesia, thus often parts of Phyllospadix can be seen as well

Female gametophyte conceptacle with egg at the base of the trichogyne. The trichogyne is the tip of the carpogonium and is used to catch spermatia.

trichogyne

Close up just the trichogynes. 

trichogyne

Male gametophyte conceptacle filled with spermatia (the purple dots).

male conceptacle

Conceptacle of carposporophyte. One egg has been fertilized and undergone mitosis (carpospores) and the others eggs are degenerating.

carpospores

Sporophyte conceptacle with zonate tetraspore inside. 

zonate tetraspores

Conceptacle of sporophyte with zonate tetraspores (light pink) and one pre-zonate that is just before meiosis (red). 

conceptacle with tetraspores

Morphology and Characteristics   Taxonomy   Ecology   Life History Recruitment   California species    Identification   Photo gallery   References   Home 

© 2001 Melissa Roth