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Bangladesh J. Plant Taxon. 15(1): 63-65, 2008 (June) 
© 2008 Bangladesh Association of Plant Taxonomists - Short communication  

MARINE ALGAE FROM ST. MARTIN’S ISLAND, BANGLADESH. V. 
ANTITHAMNIONELLA FLOCCOSA (MÜLLER) WHITTICK 

(RHODOPHYCEAE), A NEW RECORD 
 

ABDUL AZIZ1 AND A.K.M. NURUL ISLAM 
 

Department of Botany, University of Dhaka, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh 
 

Keywords: Antithamnionella floccosa, Red alga, Rhodophyceae, Marine algae, Bangladesh 
 

 A large number of marine red algae have so far been reported from the St. Martin’s 
Island, Bangladesh by Islam and coworkers (Islam 1976, Islam and Aziz 1982, 1987, 
Aziz 1997, Aziz et al. 2002a, b, Islam et al. 2002). Among these works, Antithamnion 
divergens J. Ag. was reported by Islam et al. (2002). Besides, Islam (1976) provisionally 
placed a specimen of filamentous red alga in tetrasporic stage under the genus 
Antithamnion and mentioned its superficial resemblance with A. elegance Berth. and A. 
cruciatum (Ag.) Näg. fa. tenuissima. 
 Recently, Whittick (1980) made a new combination of Antithamnion floccosum 
(Müller) Kleen as Antithamnionella floccosa (Müller) Whittick. In the genus 
Antithamnionella, the branches are irregularly alternate to indefinite ramifications, in 
contrast to opposite branching in the genus Antithamnion. In this paper, a material 
collected from the St. Martin’s Island, Bangladesh is described and illustrated as 
Antithamnionella floccosa (Müller) Whittick, as a new record for Bangladesh. 

 
Order: Ceramiales; Family: Ceramiaceae; Genus: Antithamnionella Whittick 

 

Antithamnionella floccosa (Müller) Whittick (Figs 1-4) 
(Whittick 1980) 
(Syn: Callithamnion floccosum CA Ag., Conferva floccosa Müller, Newton 1931, 390; 
Taylor 1957, 293 as Antithamnion floccosum (Müller) Kleen) 
 Plants brownish-red, densely tufted, soft and delicate throughout, 5-10 cm tall, 
uniaxial; branches beset with branched and short branchlets whose tip cells are conical to 
strongly pointed; segments of the main axis 30-50 µm broad, 2-5 times as long as broad; 
branchlet cells 15-18 µm broad, 2-3 times as long as broad. Cells with numerous rounded 
chromatophores. Carpogenic branches developed from the lowest cell of a branchlet; 
cystocarps consisted of a huge mass of carposporangia, partially covered with three two-
celled involucres, appearing terminal on branchlets. Tetrasporic plants not found in the 
collection. 
 
 
1Corresponding author. E-mail: botany@univdhaka.edu; duregstr@bangla.net 



64 AZIZ AND ISLAM 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Figs 1-4. Antithamnionella floccosa (Müller) Whittick. 1. Terminal part of the alga at a low magnification, 2. 
A branch enlarged showing branching type and cell structure, 3-4. Enlarged cystocarps, partially covered 
with involucres. c, Carpospore. (Bars = 10 µm) 



MARINE ALGAE FROM ST. MARTIN’S ISLAND, BANGLADESH 65 

 
 Specimen examined: The specimen was collected from the north-west coast of the St. 
Martin’s Island, Bangladesh, growing on rocks in rock pools as a common form, on 
March 27, 1997 by A.K.M. Nurul Islam. 
 Distribution: Northern Massachusetts to Maine, Nova Scotia, growing upon coarse 
algae and sometimes in tide pools in spring season (Taylor 1957); N. Scotland, growing 
on rocks, near low-water mark, very rare (Newton 1931). 
 
Acknowledgements 
 Late National Professor A.K.M. Nurul Islam left some materials, which need to be 
worked out and published. The present Short Communication is first of its kind. 
 
References 
Aziz, A. 1997. Peyssonnelia polymorpha (Zonars.) Schmitz (Rhodophyta) newly recorded from St. Martin’s 

Island, Bangladesh. Bangladesh J. Plant Taxon. 4(1): 81-83.  
Aziz, A., Islam, A.K.M. Nurul and Jahan A. 2002a. Marine algae of St. Martin’s Island, Bangladesh. III. Red 

algae. J. Asiatic Soc. Bangladesh 28(1): 63-70. 
Aziz, A., Islam, A.K.M. Nurul and Jahan A. 2002b. Marine algae of St. Martin’s Island, Bangladesh. IV. 

New records of red algae. Bangladesh J. Bot. 31(2): 113-116. 
Islam, A.K.M. Nurul 1976. Contribution to the study of Marine algae of Bangladesh. Bibliotheca 

Phycologica 19: 1-253. 
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Bangladesh. II. Brown, red and blue-green algae. Nova Hedwigia 36: 643-657. 
Islam, A.K.M. Nurul and Aziz, A. 1987. Addition to the list of marine algae of St. Martin’s Island, 

Bangladesh. III. Red algae. Nova Hedwigia 45(1-2): 211-221. 
Islam, A.K.M. Nurul, Aziz, A. and Jahan, A. 2002. Marine algae of St. Martin’s Island, Bangladesh. II. New 

records of red algae. Bangladesh J. Bot. 31(1): 23-29. 
Newton, L. 1931. A Handbook of the British Seaweeds. British Museum, London, pp. 1-478. 
Taylor, W.R. 1957. Marine Algae of the Northeastern Coast of North America. Univ. Michigan Press, Ann 

Arbor, pp. 1-509. 
Whittick, A. 1980. Antithamnionella floccosa (O.F. Müll.) nov. comb.: a taxonomic re-appraisal of 

Antithamnion floccosum (O.F. Müll.) Kleen (Rhodophyta: Ceramiaceae). Phycologia 19: 74-79. 

 

(Manuscript received on 13 May 2007; revised on 13 November 2007)