Sirogonium | |
---|---|
Sirogonium | |
Scientific classification | |
Clade: | Viridiplantae |
(unranked): | Charophyta |
Class: | Zygnematophyceae |
Order: | Zygnematales |
Family: | Zygnemataceae |
Genus: | Sirogonium Kützing 1843 |
Type species | |
Sirogonium sticticum (Smith) Kützing | |
Species | |
21; see text. |
Sirogonium is a genus of filamentous charophyte green algae of the order Zygnematales. It is found in freshwater areas on all continents but Antarctica. Spirogyra measures approximately 32–115 μm in width. Each cell contains 2–10 chloroplasts in a ribbon, in contrast to the closely related genus Spirogyra, which has chloroplasts in a coil.[1][2] Molecular phylogenetic studies have placed Sirogonium inside a clade consisting of Spirogyra species; in other words, Spirogyra is paraphyletic with respect to Sirogonium.[3]