| Hydrodictyaceae | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pediastrum | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Division: | Chlorophyta |
| Class: | Chlorophyceae |
| Order: | Sphaeropleales |
| Family: | Hydrodictyaceae Dumortier, 1829 |
| Genera [1] | |
See text | |
Hydrodictyaceae is a family of green algae in the order Sphaeropleales. [1] They are found in freshwater habitats worldwide. [2]
Members of this family are either unicellular or colonial. Cells are cylindrical, polyhedral, spherical, or sometimes nearly spherical. Cells contain a single parietal, chloroplast with a pyrenoid. [3] The cell wall may be smooth or covered in warts, ribs or other ornamentation. [4]
Reproduction can occur asexually or sexually. In asexual reproduction, the mother cell becomes a number of zoospores and swim inside the enlarged mother cell wall, until they attach to each other and become a new colony. In Tetraedron , the cells do not produce zoospores but produce autospores within the enlarged mother cell wall. Sexual reproduction, when observed, occurs via isogamous gametes. [2]
Because the cell wall of some Hydrodictyaceae contain sporopollenin, they decay very slowly and thus last long in the fossil record. [5]
