Galapagos Species Database

Taxon category: Accepted

Syn.: Ralfsia pangoensis var. galapagensis Setchell & N.L. Gardner, fide Guiry & Guiry (2010). Type locality: Conway Bay, Indefatigable Island Type: No. 236506 (CAS), leg. J.T. Howell 781, 8 June 1932 Tanaka, J. and M. Chihara. 1982. Note: J. Tanaka & Chihara (1982: 388--389) proposed the family Mesosporaceae to accommodate three genera usually placed in the Ralfsiaceae--- Mesospora Weber-van Bosse (1911: 27), Hapalospongidion D. Saunders (1899: 37), and Basispora D. John & Lawson (1974: 285--289). These genera were said to share an allegedly unique combination of characters, including intercalary plurilocular reproductive organs, terminal unilocular sporangia not associated with paraphyses, and free-standing vegetative filaments. Womersley (1987: 74--75), however, gave cogent reasons for merging the three genera under the earliest name, Hapalospongidion D. Saunders (1899: 37). He retained the combined genus in the Ralfsiaceae

Origin: Native

• Guiry, M.D. Guiry, G.M. (2021) AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. http://www.algaebase.org
• Miller, K.A. Garske, L.E. (2011) Galápagos Seaweeds. unpublished manuscript, 49 pp.
• Setchell, W.A. Gardner, N.L. (1937) The Templeton Crocker Expedition of the California Academy of Sciences, 1932. No. 31: A preliminary report on the algae. Proceedings of the California Academy of Science, series 4, 22(2): 65-98, 1 fig, plates 3-25.
• Silva, P.C. (1966) Status of our knowledge of the Galapagos benthic marine algal flora prior to the Galapagos International Scientific Project. In: Bowman, R.I. (ed.): The Galapagos Islands Symposium of the Galapagos International Scientific Project. University of California Press, Berkeley, p. 149-156.
• Tanaka, J. Chihara, M. (1982) Morphology and taxonomy of Mesospora schmidtii Weber van Bosse, Mesosporaceae fam. nov. (Ralfsiales, Phaeophyceae). Phycologia 21: 382-389.