Sinkoraena gen. nov. (Halymeniaceae, Rhodophyta) from Korea, Japan, and southern Australia

• Published in: Phycologia (Oxford) Vol. 36; no. 2; pp. 103 - 113
• Main Authors: Lee, Hae-Bok, Lewis, John A., Kraft, Gerald T., Lee, In Kyu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis 01.03.1997
• Subjects: Grateloupia okamurae; Grateloupia tasmanica; Halymeniaceae; Marine; Rhodophyta; Sinkoraena; Australia; INW, Korea, Rep; Japan; PSE, Australia; INW, Japan
• ISSN: 0031-8884; 2330-2968
• DOI: 10.2216/i0031-8884-36-2-103.1

Sinkoraena gen. nov. is proposed for the Japanese and Korean species currently known as Grateloupia okamurae Yamada and the southeastern Australian G. tasmanica Womersley et Lewis. Characters distinguishing the new genus from Grateloupia are the cartilaginous texture, densely proliferous frond faces and margins, thick cortex, predominantly stellate inner cortical cells, reproductive structures (carpogonial and auxiliary-cell ampullae, cystocarps, spermatangia, and tetrasporangia) borne primarily in lateral proliferations, and bushy auxiliary-cell ampullae similar to those of the genus Polyopes. Polyopes , the probable closest relative, differs from Sinkoraena in lacking stellate inner cortical cells and proliferous frond surfaces, and in forming tetrasporangia in nemathecial sori. Sinkoraena okamurae (Yamada) comb. nov. is distinguished from S. tasmanica (Womersley et Lewis) comb. nov. by its wider frond (to 40 mm vs 8 mm) and confinement of its cystocarps and spermatangia to lateral proliferations, as opposed to non-thickened regions of both proliferations and upper main axes.