All about algae. Interesting facts about algae

Algae can live and reproduce in such special conditions that seem to us, at first glance, completely unacceptable for life. These can be hot springs, the temperature of which sometimes reaches boiling point, as well as cold arctic waters, ice and snow.

Algae living in unusual conditions

Algae can live at fairly wide temperature limits: from three degrees to eighty-five. But most organisms live in a narrower range.

Algae living in unusual conditions ensure the bloom of ice not on its surface, due to mass reproduction, but in various kinds of depressions or projections that are immersed in water. Initially, they develop on the lower part of the ice cover, and then freeze with the arrival of cold weather. The ice thaws, and with it algae come to the surface.

All algae that live in unusual cold conditions are called cryobionts. In low temperature conditions, not only microscopic algae live, but also multicellular algae, for example, kelp.

Algae in salt waters

For obvious reasons, the saltier the water, the fewer living organisms live in it. This also applies to algae. Only a few of them tolerate high salinity. But even in extremely concentrated waters, single-celled green species live. Sometimes such algae in nature cause green or red “blooms”. The bottom of salty reservoirs is sometimes completely covered with them.

The characteristics of algae are such that in highly salty water they sometimes lead to unexpected biochemical processes. For example, the formation of therapeutic mud.

Algae that live without water

Aerophilic algae, living in unusual conditions, come into direct contact with air. The typical habitat for such species is the surface of rocks, stones, and tree bark.

According to the degree of moisture, they are divided into two subgroups: air and water-air. The life of algae is very unique and is characterized by sharp and frequent changes in temperature and humidity. During the day, these algae warm up quite strongly, and at night the temperature drops significantly.

Only aerophilic algae are susceptible to such sudden changes. However, they are well adapted to such an existence. Their largest colonies are observed on the surfaces of wet rocks.

Factors in algae development

The main factors that influence the development of algae are the presence of moisture, light, temperature, carbon, organic and mineral fertilizers. Algae are very widespread throughout the world, they can be found in water, on the bark of trees, in the soil and on its surface, on the walls of stone buildings, and even in the most unsuitable places for habitation.

Oddly enough, some species are so adapted to life in extreme conditions that the wave feels comfortable, and even reproduces very actively.

It is a mistake to assume that in conditions of high and very low temperatures there is nothing alive. This is absolutely not true. It turns out that unicellular and multicellular algae live quite normally in such conditions. They are not always visible to the naked eye, but they live in both hot geysers and ice.

Recent research in Kamchatka has led biologists to rather unexpected results. The researchers had a goal: to examine hot springs for mercury content. It was initially assumed that the water from these sources was not suitable for drinking.

During the research, it turned out that only one geyser is dangerous. However, other rather interesting facts also emerged. Biologists confidently report the discovery of dark green filamentous algae in hot water. It would seem, well, what’s surprising here. The fact that they live at high temperatures has long been known. But the water temperature of the geysers under study reached 98 degrees. Although previously it was assumed that the limiting temperature of their habitat was around eighty-seven degrees.

Instead of an afterword

For us, the usual habitat for algae is water. But, as we could see, this is not entirely true. Among them there are quite a few species that feel great outside the water. Moreover, as it turned out, algae have a very wide temperature range of habitat, like no other living organism. They are able not only to live, but also to reproduce in the most harsh conditions, where, it would seem, nothing living can exist. And for some species these are quite acceptable and comfortable conditions.

Hi all! It's time for a new post, the topic of which will be general characteristics seaweed From what you read below, you will learn their structure, how they reproduce and what algae actually are, what is it?

General characteristics of algae.

Algae are lower semi-aquatic or aquatic plants that live in oceans, lakes, streams and ponds, or on moist land areas. Together with animals, they form ocean plankton and are the main source of food for fish.

Some algae are huge and complex in structure, while others are single-celled organisms that are no more than 0.01 mm in diameter. Some of the seaweed species reach 100 m in length.

Algae are a fairly diverse group of plants that are classified according to characteristics such as cell wall composition and pigmentation.

In total, there are about 20 thousand algae in the world. They find shelter in hot springs, in which the water is boiling water, and in polar ice, in salty brine, and in hard water.

Structure.

All algal cells have chromatophores that contain various pigments. Green chlorophyll – the most important of these, it is present in chromatophores called chloroplasts. Different algae have different numbers and shapes of chloroplasts.

For example, chlorella has one single chloroplast, similar to a calyx. Spirogyra has numerous chloroplasts, which are connected into long spiral ribbons. And in other algae they are in the shape of stars or saucers.

Each group of algae has its own range of pigments in a special combination. Thanks to this, there are groups of blue-green, brown, red and green algae. Some of the species form lichens in symbiosis with.

Unicellular algae like chlorella consist of just one cell, where inside the shell there is a carrier of genetic material - DNA (nucleus) - and chloroplasts containing chlorophyll.

Some unicellular algae can move using flagella. Multicellular algae consist of many threads that form thalli of different shapes, this is clearly seen in the example of seaweed.

Reproduction.

Algae reproduce in various ways. Some reproduce vegetatively (fragments of the thallus fall off and continue to grow on their own). Unicellular algae They usually reproduce in the same way as some - by division.

Asexual reproduction of higher algae occurs with the help of spores that are formed from the mother cell. Some spores have flagella (zoospores), which give them motility.

Same as bacteria conjugation also occurs. In a more sophisticated way, sexual reproduction occurs in more complex algae (like fucus). The female and male reproductive organs of most fucus species appear on different plants, but sometimes they are found on the same plant.

The female (oogonium) and male (antheridium) reproductive organs, which appear in the spring, throw their cells into the water when they are covered by a tidal wave. With the help of flagella, male gametes approach and merge with immobile eggs.

Initially, the fertilized egg is enveloped in a cell wall, and later it germinates and gives rise to a new plant.

I hope that the general characteristics of algae helped you understand everything. 😉

SEAWEED
(Algae), a large and heterogeneous group of primitive, plant-like organisms. With few exceptions, they contain the green pigment chlorophyll, which is necessary for nutrition through photosynthesis, i.e. synthesis of glucose from carbon dioxide and water. Colorless algae are very rare, but in many cases the green chlorophyll is masked by pigments of a different color. In fact, among the thousands of species included in this group, you can find forms colored in any of the tones of the solar spectrum. Although algae are sometimes considered to be among the most primitive organisms, this opinion can only be accepted with significant reservations. Indeed, many of them lack complex tissues and organs comparable to those well known in seed plants, ferns and even mosses and liverworts, but all the processes necessary for the growth, nutrition and reproduction of their cells are very, if not completely, similar to occurring in plants. Thus, physiologically, algae are quite complex. Algae are the most numerous, most important to the planet, and most widely distributed photosynthetic organisms. There are many of them everywhere - in fresh waters, on land and in the seas, which cannot be said, for example, about liverworts, mosses, ferns or seed plants. To the naked eye, algae can often be observed as small or large patches of green or otherwise colored foam ("mud") on the surface of the water. On soil or tree trunks they usually appear as a green or blue-green slime. In the sea, thalli of large algae (macrophytes) resemble red, brown and yellow shiny leaves of various shapes.
Morphology and anatomy. The sizes of algae vary widely - from microscopic forms with a diameter or length of thousandths of a centimeter to sea giants more than 60 m long. Many algae are unicellular or consist of several cells forming loose aggregates. Some are strictly organized colonies of cells, but there are also true multicellular organisms. Cells can be connected at their ends, forming chains and threads - both branched and unbranched. The whole structure sometimes looks like a small disk, a tube, a club and even a tree, and sometimes it resembles a ribbon, a star, a boat, a ball, a leaf or a tuft of hair. The surface of the cells can be smooth, or covered with a complex pattern of spines, papillae, pits and ridges. Most algae have cells general structure similar to the green cells of plants such as corn or tomato. A rigid cell wall, consisting mainly of cellulose and pectin substances, surrounds the protoplast, in which a nucleus and cytoplasm are distinguished with special organelles included in it - plastids. The most important of them are chloroplasts, which contain chlorophyll. The cell also contains fluid-filled cavities - vacuoles, which contain dissolved nutrients, mineral salts and gases. However, this cell structure is not characteristic of all algae. In diatoms, one of the most important components of the cell wall is silica, which creates a kind of glass shell. The green color of chloroplasts is often masked by other substances, usually pigments. A small number of algae do not have a rigid cell wall at all.
Locomotion. Many aquatic vegetative cells and algal colonies, as well as some types of their reproductive cells, move quite quickly. They are equipped with one or more whip-like appendages - flagella, the beating of which pushes them through the water column. Some algae lacking a cell wall are able to stretch parts of their body forward, pull the rest towards them, and thereby “crawl” along solid surfaces. This movement is called amoeboid, since well-known amoebas move in approximately the same way. The rectilinear or zigzag locomotion of diatoms - owners of a solid cell wall - is probably due to water currents created by various stream movements of their cytoplasm. Sliding, crawling, and wave-like movement of algae more or less rigidly attached to the substrate is usually accompanied by the formation and liquefaction of mucus.
Reproduction. Almost all unicellular algae are capable of reproducing by simple division. The cell divides in two, and so do both daughter cells, and this process, in principle, can go on ad infinitum. Since the cell dies only as a result of an “accident,” we can talk about a kind of immortality. A special case is cell division in diatoms. Their shell consists of two halves (flaps) that fit into each other, like two parts of a soap dish. Each daughter cell receives one parent valve, and completes the second itself. As a result, in a diatom, one valve may be new, and the second may be inherited from a distant ancestor. The protoplast of some vegetative cells is capable of dividing to form motile or immobile spores. From them, after a long or short period of rest, a mature algae develops. This is one of the forms asexual reproduction. During sexual reproduction in algae, male and female reproductive cells (gametes) are formed. The male gamete merges with the female one, i.e. Fertilization occurs and a zygote is formed. The latter, usually after a dormant period lasting, depending on the type of algae, from several weeks to several years, begins to grow and ultimately produces an adult individual. Gametes vary greatly in size, shape and mobility. In some algae, male and female gametes are structurally similar, while in others they are clearly different, i.e. are sperm and eggs. Thus, the sexual reproduction of algae has many forms and levels of complexity.

DISTRIBUTION AND ECOLOGY

Aquatic algae. It is difficult to find a place on the planet where there are no algae. They are usually considered aquatic organisms, and, indeed, the vast majority of algae live in puddles and ponds, rivers and lakes, seas and oceans, and in certain seasons they can become very abundant there. Algae attach to rocks, stones, pieces of wood, aquatic plants, or float freely, forming part of plankton. At times, this suspension of them, which includes billions of microscopic forms, reaches the consistency pea soup, filling vast spaces of lakes and seas. This phenomenon is called “algal bloom” of water. The depth at which algae can be found depends on the transparency of the water, i.e. its ability to transmit the light necessary for photosynthesis. Most algae are concentrated in a surface layer several decimeters thick, but some green and red algae are found at significantly greater depth. Some species are capable of growing in the ocean at a depth of 60-90 m. Some algae, even frozen into ice, can remain viable in a state of suspended animation for many months.
Soil algae. Despite its name, algae is not only found in water. For example, there are a lot of them in the soil. In 1 g of well-manured soil you can find approx. 1 million of their individual copies. Those concentrated on the soil surface and directly below it feed themselves through photosynthesis. Others live in the dark, are colorless and absorb dissolved food from the environment, i.e. are saprophytes. The main group of soil algae are diatoms, although green, yellow-green and golden algae are also abundant in places in this habitat.
Snow algae V large quantities often found in the ice and snow of the Arctic and Antarctic deserts, as well as alpine highlands. They grow just as well in the cold polar seas as in hot springs. The so-called “red snow” is the result of the presence of microscopic algae in it. Snow algae are colored red, green, yellow and brown.
Other types of algae. Algae also live in many other habitats, sometimes quite unusual. They are found, for example, on the surface or inside of aquatic and terrestrial plants. Settling in the tissues of many tropical and subtropical species, they grow here so actively that they can damage their leaves: in the tea bush this disease is called “rust”. In temperate climates, algae often cover the bark of trees with a green coating, usually on the shaded side. Some green algae form symbiotic associations with certain fungi; such associations are special, completely independent organisms called lichens. A number of small forms grow on the surface and inside larger algae, and one genus of green algae grows only on the shell of turtles. Green and red algae are found in the hair follicles of three-toed sloths that inhabit rain rainforests Central and South America. Algae also grow on the bodies of fish and crustaceans. Perhaps some flatworms and coelenterates may not swallow food at all, since they receive it from green algae that live in their body.
Limiting environmental factors. Although algae are found almost everywhere, each species requires a certain combination of light, humidity and temperature, as well as the presence of necessary gases and mineral salts, to live. Photosynthesis requires light, water and carbon dioxide. Some algae tolerate significant periods of almost complete drying out, but they still require water to grow, which serves as the only habitat for the vast majority of forms. The oxygen and CO2 content in water bodies varies greatly, but algae usually have enough of them. Large amounts of algae in shallow bodies of water sometimes consume so much oxygen overnight that they cause massive fish kills: they can no longer breathe. For algae to grow, nitrogen compounds and many other compounds dissolved in water are required. chemical elements. The concentration of these mineral salts in the water column is much lower than in many soils, but for a number of species, as a rule, it is sufficient for mass development. Sometimes algae growth is severely limited due to the lack of a single element: diatoms, for example, are rare in water containing little silicate. Attempts have been made to divide algae into ecological groups: aquatic, soil, snow or crust forms, epibionts, etc. Some algae grow and reproduce only at certain times of the year, i.e. can be considered annuals; others are perennials, in which only reproduction is confined to a certain time. A number of unicellular and colonial forms complete the vegetative and reproductive phases of their life cycle in just a few days. All these phenomena are, of course, associated not only with the heredity of organisms, but also with various environmental factors, but elucidating the exact relationships within the emerging ecological groups of algae is a matter for the future.

ALGAE IN THE PAST

It is likely that some forms of algae existed already in the most ancient geological eras. Many of them, judging by modern species, could not leave fossils due to the peculiarities of their structure (lack of solid parts), so it is impossible to say exactly what they were like. Fossil forms of the main current groups of algae, except for diatoms and several others, have been known since the Paleozoic (570-245 million years ago). The most abundant algae in that era were probably green, brown, red and chara algae that lived in the seas and oceans. Indirect evidence of the early appearance of algae on our planet is the scientifically proven existence in the Paleozoic of many marine animals that were supposed to feed on organic matter. Their primary source was most likely photosynthetic algae, which consume only minerals.
Fossil diatoms. Fossil diatoms (diatoms) in the form of a special rock - the so-called. Diatomite - found in many regions. Diatomite can be of both marine and freshwater origin. In California, for example, there is a deposit with an area of ​​approximately 30 km2 and a thickness of almost 400 m. It consists almost exclusively of diatom shells. There are up to 650,000 of them in 1 cm3 of diatomite.
Evolution of algae. Many groups of algae appear to have changed little since their origins. However, certain species of them, once very abundant, are now extinct. As far as is known, there have been no major fluctuations in the species diversity and total abundance of algae throughout the history of the Earth. Aquatic habitats have changed little over many millions of years, and modern forms of algae have certainly existed for a very long time. It is unlikely that any large group of algae appeared later than the Paleozoic or early Mesozoic (240 million years ago).

ECONOMIC ASPECTS

Harm caused. Some algae are economically damaging or at least a major nuisance. They contaminate water sources, often giving it an unpleasant taste and odor. Some massively multiplied species can be identified by their specific “aroma.” Fortunately, there are now so-called algaecides are substances that effectively kill algae without impairing the quality of drinking water. To combat algae in fish ponds, measures such as increasing the “flow” of the system, shading it, and stirring it up are also used. Crayfish, for example, maintain water turbidity sufficient to greatly inhibit algae growth. Some algae, especially during periods of their “blooming”, spoil areas designated for swimming. During storms, many marine macrophytes are torn from the substrate and thrown onto the beach by waves and wind, literally covering it with their rotting mass. In their dense accumulations, fish fry can become entangled. Several types of algae, when ingested by animals, cause poisoning, sometimes fatal. Others turn out to be a disaster in greenhouses or damage plant leaves.
The benefits of algae. Seaweed has many beneficial properties.
Food for aquatic animals. Algae can be considered the primary food source for all aquatic animals. Thanks to the presence of chlorophyll, they synthesize organic substances from inorganic substances. Fish and other aquatic animals consume this organic matter directly (by eating algae) or indirectly (by eating other animals), so algae can be considered the first link in almost all food chains in water bodies.
Food for humans. In many countries, especially in the East, people use several types of large algae for food. Their nutritional value is low, but the content of vitamins and minerals in such “greenery” it can be quite high.
Agar source. Some seaweed produces agar, a gelatinous substance used to make jelly, ice cream, shaving cream, salads, emulsions, laxatives, and for growing microorganisms in laboratories.
Diatomite Diatomite is used in abrasive powders and filters, and also serves as a thermal insulation material replacing asbestos.
Fertilizer. Algae are a valuable fertilizer, and marine macrophytes have been used to feed plants since ancient times. Soil algae can largely determine the fertility of a site, and the development of lichens on bare stones is considered the first stage of the soil-forming process.
Algal crops. Biologists have been growing algae in laboratories for a long time. At first they were grown in small transparent cups with pond water in sunlight, and recently they have been using special culture media with a certain amount of mineral salts and special growth substances, as well as controlled sources of artificial light. It has been discovered that some algae require very specific conditions for optimal development. The study of such laboratory cultures has enormously expanded our knowledge of the growth, nutrition and reproduction of these organisms, as well as their chemical composition. Now in different countries Pilot installations have already been built, which are a kind of huge aquariums. Experiments are carried out on them under strictly controlled conditions using sophisticated equipment to determine the prospects for using algal cultures. As a result, it has been proven that the dry matter production of algae per unit area can be much higher than that of current agricultural plants. Some of the species used, such as the single-celled green alga Chlorella, produce a “harvest” containing up to 50% edible protein. It is possible that future generations of people, especially in densely populated countries, will use artificially grown algae.

CLASSIFICATION OF ALGAE

In the past, algae were considered primitive plants (without specialized conducting, or vascular, tissues); they were allocated to the subdivision of algae (Algae), which, together with the subdivision of fungi (Fungi), constituted the department of thalli (layers), or lower plants (Thallophyta), - one of the four divisions of the plant kingdom (some authors use the zoological term instead of the term “division” type"). Next, the algae were divided by color - green, red, brown, etc. Color is quite strong, but not the only basis for general classification these organisms. More important for identifying different groups of algae are the types of formation of their colonies, methods of reproduction, characteristics of chloroplasts, cell walls, reserve substances, etc. Old systems usually recognized about ten such groups, considered classes. One of the modern systems classifies eight types (divisions) of the kingdom of protista (Protista) as “algae” (this term has lost its classification meaning); however, this approach is not recognized by all scientists.
Green algae constitute a department (type) Chlorophyta kingdoms of protists. They are usually the color of grass green (although the color can vary from pale yellow to almost black), and their photosynthetic pigments are the same as those of ordinary plants. Most are microscopic freshwater forms. Many species grow on the soil, forming felt-like coatings on its damp surface. They can be single- or multicellular, form filaments, spherical colonies, leaf-like structures, etc. Cells are motile (with two flagella) or immobile. Sexual reproduction has different levels of complexity depending on the species. Several thousand species have been described. The cells contain a nucleus and several clearly defined chloroplasts. One well-known genera is Pleurococcus, a single-celled algae that produces green growths often seen on tree bark. The genus Spirogyra is widespread - filamentous algae, forming long fibers of mud in streams and cold rivers. In the spring they float in sticky yellowish-green clumps on the surface of ponds. Cladophora grows as soft, highly branched "bushes" that attach to rocks near river banks. Basiocladia forms a green coating on the back freshwater turtles. The water mesh (Hydrodictyon), consisting of many cells, living in stagnant waters, really resembles a “string bag” in structure. Desmidiaceae are single-celled green algae that prefer soft swamp water; their cells are distinguished by their bizarre shape and beautifully ornamented surface. In some species, cells are connected into filamentous colonies. In the free-swimming colonial alga Scenedesmus, sickle-shaped or oblong cells are combined into short chains. This genus is common in aquariums, where its mass reproduction results in a green "fog" appearing in the water. The largest green algae is sea lettuce (Ulva), a leaf-shaped macrophyte.

VOLVOX- colonial freshwater green algae. The colony looks like a hollow ball (no more than 3 mm in diameter), the surface of which is formed by cells connected to each other by strands of protoplasm. It is assumed that colonial forms of this kind are one of the links connecting unicellular and multicellular organisms. Daughter colonies are formed within the parent colony.

UMBRELLA THALLUMS green algae acetabularia mediterranean. This genus is widely used in genetic research.

Red algae(purple) make up a department (type) Rhodophyta kingdoms of protists. Most are marine leafy, bushy or encrusting macrophytes that live below the low tide line. Their color is predominantly red due to the presence of the pigment phycoerythrin, but can be purple or bluish. Some scarlet fish are found in fresh water, mainly in streams and clear, fast rivers. Batrachospermum is a gelatinous, highly branched algae consisting of brownish or reddish bead-like cells. Lemanea is a brush-like form that often grows in fast-flowing rivers and waterfalls, where its thalli are attached to rocks. Audouinella is a filamentous algae found in small rivers. Irish moss (Chondrus cripus) is a common marine macrophyte. Purple plants do not form motile cells. Their sexual process is very complex, and one life cycle includes several phases.

ALMOST ALL RED ALGAE grow in the seas. Their leafy, bushy or crusty life forms are colored in various shades of red.

Brown algae constitute a department (type) Phaeophyta kingdoms of protists. Almost all of them are inhabitants of the sea. Only a few species are microscopic, and among macrophytes the largest algae in the world are found. The last group includes kelp, macrocystis, fucus, sargassum and lessonia (“sea palms”), which are most abundant along the coasts of cold seas. All brown algae are multicellular. Their color varies from greenish-yellow to dark brown and is caused by the pigment fucoxanthin. Sexual reproduction is associated with the formation of motile gametes with two lateral flagella. The specimens that form gametes are often completely different from organisms of the same species that reproduce only by spores.

MARINE MACROPHYTES- the largest algae in the world. These multicellular organisms resemble green plants more than any other algae: their thalli are often branched, looking like stems covered with leaves. Another feature they have in common with plants is the need for sunlight for photosynthesis. That's why they can't grow on great depth where the sun's rays do not penetrate. Some species of these algae float freely, others are attached to rocks in the tidal zone or on the seabed. The photo shows brown algae.

Diatoms(diatoms) are grouped into a class Bacillariophyceae, which in the classification used here is included, together with golden and yellow-green algae, in the department (phylum) Chrysophyta of the protist kingdom. Diatoms are a very large group of unicellular marine and freshwater species. Their color ranges from yellow to brown due to the presence of the pigment fucoxanthin. The protoplast of diatoms is protected by a box-shaped silica (glass) shell - a shell consisting of two valves. The hard surface of the valves is often covered with a complex pattern of strokes, tubercles, pits and ridges characteristic of the species. These shells are among the most beautiful microscopic objects, and the clarity of their pattern is sometimes used to test the resolving power of the microscope. Typically, the valves are permeated with pores or have a gap called a suture. The cell contains a nucleus. In addition to cell division in two, sexual reproduction is also known. Many diatoms are free-swimming forms, but some are attached to underwater objects by slimy legs. Sometimes cells are united into threads, chains or colonies. There are two types of diatoms: pinnate with elongated, bilaterally symmetrical cells (they are most abundant in fresh waters) and centric, whose cells, when viewed from the valve, look round or polygonal (they are most abundant in the seas). As already mentioned, the shells of these algae are preserved after cell death and settle to the bottom of water bodies. Over time, their powerful accumulations are compacted into a porous rock- diatomite.

DIATOMEAS- an extensive group of unicellular marine and freshwater algae. Some types of cells are connected in straight or zigzag chains. Unlike other algae, diatoms are protected by a silica shell of two valves, one of which is larger than the other and covers it like the lid of a soap dish. The valves are often covered with a complex pattern, so under a microscope many diatoms resemble fine jewelry. Depending on how their shell looks from the side of the valves, these algae are divided into two groups - centric and cirrus. The former have radial symmetry, the latter have oblong cells and bilateral symmetry (sometimes they are somewhat asymmetrical). The micrograph shows centric diatoms.

Flagellates. These organisms, due to their ability for “animal” nutrition and a number of other important characteristics, are now often classified as the subkingdom of protozoa (Protozoa) of the protist kingdom, but they can also be considered as a department (type) not included in Protozoa. Euglenophyta the same kingdom. All flagellates are unicellular and motile. Cells are green, red or colorless. Some species are capable of photosynthesis, while others (saprophytes) absorb dissolved organic matter or even ingest solid particles. Sexual reproduction is known only in some species. A common inhabitant of ponds is Euglena, a green algae with a red “eye”. It swims with the help of a single flagellum and is capable of both photosynthesis and feeding on ready-made organic matter. In late summer, Euglena sanguinea can turn pond water red.
Dinoflagellates. These unicellular flagellated organisms are also often classified as protozoa, but they can also be classified as an independent department (phylum) Pyrrophyta of the protist kingdom. They are mostly yellow-brown, but can also be colorless. Their cells are usually motile; The cell wall in some species is absent, and sometimes it has a very bizarre shape. Sexual reproduction is known in only a few species. The marine genus Gonyaulax is one of the causes of “red tides”: near the coasts it can be so abundant that the water takes on an unusual color. This algae produces toxic substances, sometimes leading to the death of fish and shellfish. Some dinoflagellates cause phosphorescence in tropical seas.
golden algae included along with others in a department (type) Chrysophyta kingdoms of protists. Their color is yellow-brown, and the cells are motile (flagellate) or immobile. Reproduction is asexual, producing silica-impregnated cysts.
Yellow-green algae Now it is customary to combine them with the golden ones into the division (phylum) Chrysophyta, but they can also be considered an independent division (phylum) Xanthophyta of the kingdom of protists. They are similar in shape to green algae, but differ in the predominance of specific yellow pigments. Their cell walls sometimes consist of two halves that fit into each other, and in filamentous species these valves are H-shaped in longitudinal section. Sexual reproduction is known only in a few forms.
Kharovye(rays) - multicellular algae that make up the department (phylum) Charophyta kingdoms of protists. Their color varies from grayish-green to gray. Cell walls are often encrusted with calcium carbonate, so dead characeae are involved in the formation of marl deposits. These algae have a cylindrical, stem-like main axis, from which lateral processes, similar to plant leaves, extend in whorls. Characeae grow vertically in shallow water, reaching a height of 2.5-10 cm. Reproduction is sexual. Characeae are unlikely to be closely related to any of the above groups, although some botanists believe that they originated from green algae. See also PLANT SYSTEMATICS.

A group of lower aquatic plants that usually contain chlorophyll and produce organic matter through the process of photosynthesis. The body of the algae is a thallus, without true roots, stems and leaves, from fractions of a micron to 60 m. Non-cellular, unicellular ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

SEAWEED- (Algae), a common name in general life for all kinds of aquatic plants (including flowering ones), and in science only for certain groups of lower plants, namely those that contain chlorophyll and can therefore feed on their own account of CO2 assimilation.... ... Great Medical Encyclopedia

ALGAE, a large group of organisms living by photosynthesis, mainly aquatic, belonging to the kingdom PROTOCTISTS. They exist in salt and fresh water around the world and are the primary food source for shellfish, fish and other aquatic... ... Scientific and technical encyclopedic dictionary

A diverse group of eukaryotic, photosynthetic, aquatic and soil organisms. Microbiological objects. are microscopic, predominantly unicellular forms. (

Brown algae, like red algae, almost always live in seas and oceans, that is, in salty waters. All of them are multicellular. Among brown algae there are the largest representatives among all algae. Mostly brown algae grow at shallow depths (up to 20 m), although there are species that can live at depths of up to 100 m. In the seas and oceans they form peculiar thickets. Most brown algae live in subpolar and temperate latitudes Oh. However, there are also those that grow in warm waters.

Brown algae, like green algae, are capable of photosynthesis, that is, their cells contain the green pigment chlorophyll. However, they also have many other pigments that have yellow, brown, and orange colors. These pigments “interrupt” the green color of the plant, giving it a brownish tint.

As is known, all algae belong to lower plants. Their body is called a thallus, or thallus; there are no real tissues or organs. However, in a number of brown algae, the body is divided into organs, and different tissues can be distinguished.

Some species of brown algae have a complexly dissected thallus more than 10 m in length.

The vast majority of brown algae attach to underwater objects. They do this with the help of rhizoids or so-called basal disks.

In brown algae there are Various types growth. Some species grow from their apex, in others all the cells of the thallus retain the ability to divide, in others the surface cells divide, in others there are special zones of cells in the body, the division of which leads to the growth of tissues above and below them.

The cell walls of brown algae consist of an inner cellulose layer and an outer gelatinous layer, which includes various substances (salts, proteins, carbohydrates, etc.).

Cells have one nucleus and many small disc-shaped chloroplasts. Chloroplasts differ in structure from the chloroplasts of higher plants.

As a reserve nutrient, it is not starch that is deposited in the cells of brown algae, but another polysaccharide and one of the alcohols. The cells contain vacuoles with polyphenolic compounds.

Brown algae have both sexual and asexual reproduction. They can reproduce by fragmenting their thallus; some species form brood buds. Asexual reproduction is also carried out by spores produced in sporangia. Most often, spores are motile (have flagella), that is, they are zoospores. The spores give rise to a gametophyte, which forms sex cells, the fusion of which gives rise to the sporophyte.

Thus, alternation of generations is observed in brown algae. However, in other species, gametes are formed by the sporophyte, that is, the haploid stage is represented only by eggs and sperm.

It has been noted that brown algae release pheromones, which stimulate the release of sperm and their movement towards eggs.

The most famous representative of brown algae is kelp which a person eats, calling it seaweed. It has rhizoids with which it attaches to underwater objects (stones, rocks, etc.). Laminaria has something like a stem (stem), this part of the plant is not flat, but cylindrical. The length of the stem is up to half a meter, and something like flat leaves extend from it. sheet plates(several meters each).

Brown algae is not only used by humans for food, it is used in the food and textile industries, and some medicines are made from it.

Algae can be positioned as the most numerous organisms that are distributed throughout the territory globe. They live not only in fresh and salt waters, but also on land and even rocks. At the same time, on the surface of the water, algae are presented in the form of mud, and on wood - as green or blue-green mucus.

Where do algae live?

Certain types of algae are capable of attaching to rocks and stones. Most of these organisms live in the upper layers of the water cover. Some algae can exist freely at depths of up to 90 cm.

Moreover, a certain variety of such organisms can reproduce even in arctic cold conditions. Such algae crash into the ice floe and maintain a state of suspended animation.

Brown algae

Other species live in the soil, and some of them live on the surface of plants.

What do algae eat?

These organisms are characterized by an autotrophic mode of nutrition, so algae absorb inorganic substances from the environment. Subsequently, through photosynthesis, algae obtain the organic matter they need, releasing oxygen. A large number of animals and fish that consume algae as food can be considered as natural enemies of these species.

Are algae dangerous for humans?

Algae are consumed by humans as food. Moreover, they are quite often used in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. It should also be noted that there is a type of algae that is distinguished by the presence of a large amount of iodine content. Eating them may result in poisoning with this element. Another type of such organisms is capable of producing hydrogen sulfide, which causes diarrhea and vomiting in humans.

Brown algae

Brown algae is a division of true multicellular brown algae. This group of plants includes 250 genera and about 1,500 species. The most famous representatives are kelp, cystoseira, sargassum.

These are mainly marine plants, only 8 species are secondary freshwater forms. Brown algae are widespread in the seas of the globe, reaching particular diversity and abundance in cold water bodies of subpolar and temperate latitudes, where they form large thickets in the coastal strip. IN tropical zone The largest accumulation of brown algae is observed in the Sargasso Sea; their massive development usually occurs in winter, when the water temperature drops. Vast underwater forests are formed by kelp algae off the coast of North America.

Brown algae are usually attached to hard substrates, such as rocks, rocks, mollusk shells, and other algae thalli. In size they can reach from several centimeters to several tens of meters. The multicellular thallus is colored from olive green to dark brown, since the cells, in addition to chlorophyll, contain a significant amount of brown and yellow pigments. These plants have the most complex structure of all algae: in some of them, the cells are grouped in one or two rows, which resembles the tissues of higher plants.

Seaweed. Answers on questions

Species can be either annual or perennial.

Thallus. In algae of this group, thalli can be of various shapes: creeping or vertically “hanging” threads, plates (solid or cut up) or branching bushes. The thalli are attached to the solid substrate by means of rhizoids (soles). Higher brown algae of the order Laminaria and Fucus are characterized by differentiation of tissue structures and the appearance of conducting systems. Unlike algae of other groups, brown algae are characterized by the presence of multicellular hairs with a basal growth zone.

Cell structure. The cover is a thick cell wall, consisting of two or three layers, highly mucus-producing. The structural components of the cell wall are cellulose and pectin. Each cell of brown algae contains one nucleus and vacuoles (from one to several). Chloroplasts are small, disc-shaped, and brown in color due to the fact that in addition to chlorophyll and carotene, they contain a high concentration of brown pigments - xanthophylls, in particular fucoxanthin. Also in the cytoplasm of the cell, reserves of nutrients are deposited: the polysaccharide laminarin, polyhydric alcohol mannitol and various fats (oils).

Propagation of brown algae. Reproduction is carried out asexually and sexually, rarely vegetatively. The reproductive organs are sporangia, both unilocular and multilocular. Usually there is a gametophyte and a sporophyte, and in higher algae they alternate in strict sequence, while in lower algae there is no clear alternation.

Meaning. The importance of brown algae in nature and human life is great. They are the main source of organic matter in coastal zone seas. In the thickets of these algae, which occupy vast areas, many marine inhabitants find shelter and food. In industry, they are used in the production of alginic acids and their salts, to obtain feed flour and powder for the manufacture of medicines containing high concentrations of iodine and a number of other microelements. In aquariums, the appearance of brown algae is associated with insufficient lighting. Some species are eaten.

Types and habitats of algae

Plankton is a collection of organisms that inhabit the water column of continental and marine reservoirs and are not able to resist transport by currents (i.e., as if floating in the water). Plankton includes phyto-, bacterio- and zooplankton.

Phytoplankton is a collection of small, mostly microscopic plants free-floating in the water column, the bulk of which are algae. Phytoplankton inhabit only the euphotic zone of water bodies (the surface layer of water with sufficient illumination for photosynthesis).

Planktonic algae live in a wide variety of bodies of water - from a small puddle to the ocean. They are absent only in reservoirs with a sharply anomalous regime, including thermal (at a water temperature above +80 ° C and dead (contaminated with hydrogen sulfide) reservoirs, in clean periglacial waters that do not contain mineral nutrients, as well as in cave lakes. Total The biomass of phytoplankton is small compared to the biomass of zooplankton (1.5 and more than 20 billion tons, respectively), but due to the rapid reproduction of its production in the World Ocean is about 550 billion tons per year, which is almost 10 times more than the total production of all animal population of the ocean.

Phytoplankton is the main producer of organic matter in water bodies, due to which aquatic heterotrophic animals and some bacteria exist. Phytoplankton is the initial link in most food chains in a body of water: small planktonic animals feed on them, which feed on larger ones. Therefore, in areas of greatest phytoplankton development, zooplankton and nekton are abundant.

The composition and ecology of individual representatives of algal phytoplankton in different water bodies are extremely diverse. The total number of phytoplankton species in all marine and inland waters reaches 3000.

The abundance and species composition of phytoplankton depends on a complex of factors discussed above. In this regard, the species composition of planktonic algae in different reservoirs (and even in the same reservoir, but in different time years) are not the same. It depends on the physical and chemical regime in the reservoir. In each season of the year, one of the groups of algae (diatoms, blue-greens, golden, euglenaceae, green and some others) develops predominantly, and often only one species of one or another group dominates. This is especially pronounced in freshwater bodies of water. In inland water bodies there is a much greater diversity of ecological conditions compared to sea water bodies, which determines a significantly greater diversity of species composition and ecological complexes of freshwater phytoplankton compared to sea water. One of the significant features of freshwater phytoplankton is the abundance of temporary planktonic algae in it. A number of species, which are considered to be typically planktonic, in ponds and lakes have a bottom or periphytonic (attachment to any object) phase in their development.

Marine phytoplankton consists mainly of diatoms and dinophytes. Although marine environment relatively homogeneous over large areas; no homogeneity is observed in the distribution of marine phytoplankton. Differences in species composition and abundance are often pronounced even in relatively small areas of sea water, but they are especially clearly reflected in the large-scale geographic zonality of distribution. Here the effect of the main environmental factors is manifested: water salinity, temperature, light and nutrient content.

Planktonic algae usually have special adaptations for living suspended in the water column. In some species these are various kinds of outgrowths and appendages of the body - spines, bristles, horny processes, membranes, parachutes; others form hollow or flat colonies and secrete mucus profusely; still others accumulate in their bodies substances whose specific gravity is less than the specific gravity of water (fat droplets in diatoms and some green algae, gas vacuoles in blue-green algae). These formations are much more developed in marine phytoplankters than in freshwater ones. Another such adaptation is the small body size of planktonic algae.

The collection of marine and freshwater organisms that live near the surface film of water, attach to it, or move along it is called neuston. Neuston organisms live both in small bodies of water (ponds, water-filled pits, small bays of lakes) and in large ones, including the seas. In some cases, they develop in such quantities that they cover the water with a continuous film.

The composition of neuston includes unicellular algae that are part of different systematic groups (golden, euglenophytes, green, certain species of yellow-green and diatoms). Some neuston algae have characteristic adaptations for existing at the surface of the water (for example, slimy or scaly parachutes that hold them on the surface film).

Benthic (bottom) algae include algae adapted to exist in an attached or unattached state on the bottom of reservoirs and on a variety of objects, living and dead organisms in the water.

The predominant benthic algae of continental water bodies are diatoms, green, blue-green and yellow-green multicellular (filamentous) algae, attached or not attached to the substrate.

The main benthic algae of the seas and oceans are brown and red, sometimes green, macroscopic attached thallous forms. All of them can be overgrown with small diatoms, blue-green and other algae.

Depending on the place of growth, benthic algae differ:

1) epiliths growing on the surface of hard soil (rocks, stones);

2) epipelites inhabiting the surface of loose soils (sand, silt);

3) epiphytes living on the surface of other plants;

4) endoliths, or boring algae that penetrate the calcareous substrate (rocks, mollusk shells, crustacean shells);

7) endosymbionts living in the cells of other organisms, invertebrates or algae;

8) epizoites living on some benthic animals.

Sometimes algae growing on objects introduced into water by humans (ships, rafts, buoys) are classified as periphyton. The identification of this group is justified by the fact that its constituent organisms (algae and animals) live on objects moving or flowing around water. In addition, these organisms are removed from the bottom and, therefore, are exposed to different light and temperature conditions, as well as other conditions for the supply of nutrients. The possibility of benthic algae growing in specific habitats is determined by both abiotic and biotic factors. Among the latter, competition with other algae and the presence of animals that feed on algae play a significant role ( sea ​​urchins, gastropods, crustaceans, fish). The influence of biotic factors leads to the fact that certain types of algae do not grow at all depths and not in all bodies of water with suitable light and hydrochemical conditions.

Abiotic factors include light, temperature, as well as the content of biogenic and biologically active substances, oxygen and inorganic carbon sources in water. The rate at which these substances enter the thallus is very important, which depends on the concentration of the substances and the speed of water movement.

Benthic algae that grow in moving waters have advantages over algae that grow in slow-moving waters. The same level of photosynthesis can be achieved in them with less light, which promotes the growth of larger thalli; the movement of water prevents the settling of silt particles on rocks and stones, which interfere with the fixation of algae buds, and also washes away algae-eating animals from the soil surface. In addition, despite the fact that during strong currents or strong surf the algae thalli are damaged or torn from the ground, the movement of water still does not prevent the settlement of microscopic algae and microscopic stages of large algae. Therefore, places with intense water movement (in the seas these are straits with currents, coastal areas of the surf, in rivers - stones on riffles) are characterized by the lush development of benthic algae.

The influence of water movement on the development of benthic algae is especially noticeable in rivers, streams, and mountain streams. In these reservoirs there is a group of benthic organisms that prefer places with a constant flow. In lakes where there are no strong currents, wave motion becomes of primary importance. In the seas, waves also have a significant impact on the life of benthic algae, in particular on their vertical distribution.

IN northern seas The distribution and abundance of benthic algae is influenced by ice. Algae thickets can be destroyed (erased) by the movement of glaciers. Therefore, for example, in the Arctic, perennial algae are most easily found near the shore among boulders and rock ledges that impede the movement of ice.

The intensive development of benthic algae is also facilitated by the moderate content of nutrients in the water. In fresh waters, such conditions are created in shallow ponds, in the coastal zone of lakes, in river backwaters, in the seas - in small bays. If in such places there is sufficient lighting, hard soils and weak water movement, then optimal conditions for the life of phytobenthos are created. In the absence of water movement and its insufficient enrichment with nutrients, benthic algae grow poorly.

Hot spring algae:

Algae that can withstand high temperatures, are called thermophilic.

In nature, they settle in hot springs, geysers and volcanic lakes. They often live in waters that, in addition to high temperatures, are characterized by a high content of salts or organic substances (heavily polluted hot wastewater from factories, factories, power plants or nuclear plants).

The maximum temperatures at which it was possible to find thermophilic algae, judging by various sources, range from 52 to 84 ° C.

In total, about 200 species of thermophilic algae have been discovered, but there are relatively few species that live only at high temperatures. Most of them can withstand high temperatures, but develop more abundantly at normal temperatures. Typical inhabitants of hot waters are blue-green algae, and to a lesser extent, diatoms and some green algae.

Algae of snow and ice:

Snow and ice algae make up the vast majority of organisms that settle on frozen substrates (cryobiotopes). The total number of algae species found in cryobiotopes reaches 350, but true cryophiles, capable of vegetating only at temperatures close to 0° C, are much smaller: a little more than 100 species.

These are microscopic algae of which the vast majority are green algae(about 100 species); Several species include blue-green, yellow-green, golden, pyrophytic and diatom algae. All these species live in the surface layers of snow or ice.

where they live, structural features, representatives: green, brown, red algae!

They are united by the ability to withstand freezing without damaging fine cellular structures and then, upon thawing, quickly resume vegetation using a minimum amount of heat. Only a few of them have a resting stage; most lack any special adaptations to withstand low temperatures.

Developing in large quantities, algae are capable of causing green, yellow, blue, red, brown, brown or black “blooming” of snow and ice.

Algae from salt water bodies:

These algae grow when increased concentration in water salts, reaching 285 g/l in lakes with a predominance of table salt and 347 g/l in Glauber (soda) lakes. As salinity increases, the number of algae species decreases; only a few can tolerate very high salinity. In extremely saline (hyperhaline) water bodies, single-celled mobile green algae predominate. They often cause red or green “blooms” in salt water bodies. The bottom of hyperhaline reservoirs is sometimes completely covered with blue-green algae. they play a big role in the life of salt water bodies. The combination of organic mass formed by algae and a large amount of salts dissolved in water causes a number of unique biochemical processes characteristic of these reservoirs. For example, Chlorogloea sarcinoides (Chlorogloea sarcinoides) from the blue-greens, which develops in huge quantities in some salt lakes, as well as a number of other massively growing algae, are involved in the formation of medicinal mud.

For biological indication of water quality, almost all groups of organisms inhabiting water bodies can be used: planktonic and benthic invertebrates, protozoa, algae, macrophytes, bacteria and fish. Each of them, acting as a biological indicator, has its own advantages and disadvantages, which determine the boundaries of its use in solving bioindication problems, since all of these groups play a leading role in the general circulation of substances in a reservoir. Organisms that are usually used as bioindicators are responsible for the self-purification of a reservoir, participate in the creation of primary production, and transform the substances and energy of aquatic ecosystems.

The most developed assessment of the degree of water pollution using indicator organisms is the saprobity system. The method takes into account the relative frequency of occurrence of hydrobionts h (from 1 to 9 or from single specimens in the microscope field of view to very frequent occurrence, when there are many of them in each field of view) and their indicator significance S. For statistical reliability of the results, it is necessary that the sample contains at least 12 species of indicator organisms of one zone of saprobity c. The indicator values ​​of S for the corresponding zones of saprobity are tabulated for many organisms. Based on the calculated value of S, one can judge the state of the reservoir. A conclusion about the degree of water pollution is usually given using a point system from one to six.

Among the huge variety of microalgae, the plankton-dwelling algae of the Chlorophyta division are most often used to assess the effects of substances, while representatives of other divisions remain poorly studied, which especially concerns benthic microalgae.

Seawater pollution is complex and, therefore, an assessment of its nature and effect can only be carried out using biotesting, which is a means of obtaining fundamentally new information about pollution. Unicellular algae, due to their year-round availability and high sensitivity, are widely used as test objects for biotesting.

meaning of brown algae

Brown algae are one of the main sources of organic matter in the coastal zone, especially in the seas of temperate and subpolar zones, where their biomass can reach tens of kilograms per square meter. Thickets of brown algae serve as shelter, breeding and feeding places for many coastal animals, in addition, they create conditions for the settlement of other microscopic and macroscopic algae. The role of brown algae in the life of coastal waters is seen in the example of Macrocystis, about the thickets of which off the coast of South America Charles Darwin wrote: “I can only compare these huge underwater forests of the southern hemisphere with the terrestrial forests of tropical regions. And yet, if a forest were destroyed in any country, I don’t think that at least approximately the same number of animal species would die as with the destruction of this algae.”

The role of brown algae is also great in economic activity person. Together with other organisms, they participate in the fouling of sea vessels and buoys, worsening their performance. But brown algae are of much greater importance as raw materials for the production of various types of substances.

Firstly, brown algae is the only source of alginates - alginic acid compounds.

Depending on which metals are involved in the formation of alginates, they can be soluble in water (salts of monovalent metals) or insoluble (salts of polyvalent metals, except magnesium). Sodium alginate, which has all the properties of water-soluble alginates, is most widely used. It is capable of absorbing up to 300 weight units of water to form viscous solutions. Therefore, it is widely used to stabilize various solutions and suspensions. Adding a small amount of sodium alginate improves the quality of food products (canned food, ice cream, fruit juices, etc.), various coloring and adhesive substances.

Solutions with the addition of alginates do not lose their quality when frozen and thawed. The use of alginates improves the quality of book printing and makes natural fabrics fade-resistant and waterproof. Alginates are used in the production of plastics, synthetic fibers and plasticizers, to obtain weather-resistant paint and varnish coatings and building materials. They are used to produce high-quality lubricants for machines, soluble surgical sutures, ointments and pastes in the pharmaceutical and perfume industries. In foundries, alginates improve the quality of the molding earth. Alginates are used in fuel briquetting and in the production of electrodes for electric welding, which make it possible to obtain higher-quality welds. It is difficult to name a sector of the national economy where alginates are not used.

Another important substance obtained from brown algae is the hexahydric alcohol mannitol. It is used in the pharmaceutical industry for the manufacture of tablets, in the preparation of diabetic foods, in the production of synthetic resins, paints, paper, explosives, and in the tanning of leather. Mannitol is increasingly used during surgical operations.

Brown algae contains large amounts of iodine and other trace elements. Therefore, they are used to prepare feed flour, which is used as an additive to feed for farm animals. Thanks to this, livestock mortality is reduced, its productivity increases, and the iodine content in a number of agricultural products (eggs, milk) increases, which is important for areas where the population suffers from its deficiency.

Brown algae was once processed in large quantities to produce iodine, but now only waste from the algae industry is used for this purpose: due to the emergence of other, more cost-effective sources of iodine, it has become more profitable to process brown algae into other substances.

Brown algae in fresh and processed forms are used as fertilizers.

Brown algae has long been used in medicine. Now new directions for their use are being identified, for example, for the production of blood substitutes, for the production of drugs that prevent blood clotting, and substances that promote the removal of radioactive substances from the body.

Since ancient times, brown algae have been consumed as food, especially by the peoples of Southeast Asia.

Representatives of the order Laminariaceae are of greatest importance in this regard; the largest number of various dishes are prepared from them.

Seaweed- these are multicellular, predominantly aquatic, eukaryotic photosynthetic organisms that do not have tissues or whose body is not differentiated into vegetative organs (i.e., belonging to the subkingdom of lower plants).

❖ Systematic divisions of algae(they differ in the structure of the thallus, the set of photosynthetic pigments and reserve nutrients, the characteristics of reproduction and development cycles, habitat, etc.):
■ Golden;
■ Green (examples: spirogyra, ulotrix);
■ Red (examples: porphyry, phyllophora);
■ Brown (examples: lessonia, fucus);
■ Characeae (examples: hara, nitella);
■ Diatoms (example: Lycmophora), etc.
The number of algae species is more than 40 thousand.

❖Algae habitat: fresh and salt water bodies, wet soil, tree bark, hot springs, glaciers, etc.

❖ Environmental groups algae: planktonic, benthic (), terrestrial, soil, etc.

Planktonic forms are represented by green, golden and yellow-green algae, which have special adaptations to facilitate transport by water: reducing the density of organisms (gas vacuoles, lipid inclusions, gelatinous consistency) and increasing their surface (branched outgrowths, flattened or elongated body shape, etc.).

Benthic forms live at the bottom of reservoirs or envelop objects in the water; They are attached to the substrate by rhizoids, basal discs and suckers. In the seas and oceans they are represented mainly by brown and red algae, and in fresh water bodies - by all departments of algae, except brown algae. Benthic algae contain large chloroplasts with a high chlorophyll content.

Ground, or air, algae (usually Green or Yellow-green algae) form deposits and films of various colors on the bark of trees, wet stones and rocks, fences, roofs of houses, on the surface of snow and ice, etc. When there is a lack of moisture, terrestrial algae become saturated with organic and inorganic substances.

Soil algae (mainly Yellow-green, Golden and Diatoms) live in the thickness of the soil layer at a depth of 1-2 m.

Features of the structure of algae

The body of algae is not divided into vegetative organs and is durable and elastic thallus (thallus) . The structure of the thallus is filamentous (examples: ulotrix, spirogyra), lamellar (example: kelp), branched or bushy (example: chara). Dimensions - from 0.1 mm to several tens of meters (for some brown and red algae). The thallus of branched and bushy algae is dissected and has a linear-segmented structure; in it one can distinguish the main axis, “leaves” and rhizoids.

Some algae have special air bubbles , which hold the thallus near the surface of the water, where there is the possibility of maximum light capture for photosynthesis.

The thallus of many algae secretes mucus, which fills their internal cavities and is partially discharged out, helping to better retain water and prevent dehydration.

Algal thallus cells are not differentiated and have a permeable cell wall, the inner layer of which consists of cellulose, and the outer layer of pectin substances and (in many species) a number of additional components: lime, lignin, cutin (retaining ultraviolet rays and protecting cells from excessive loss of water during low tide ) etc. The shell performs protective and supporting functions, while providing the opportunity for growth. With a lack of moisture, the shells thicken significantly.

The cytoplasm of the cell in most algae forms a thin layer between the large central vacuole and the cell wall. The cytoplasm contains organelles: chromatophores , endoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria, Golgi apparatus, ribosomes, one or more nuclei.

Chromatophores- these are algal organelles containing photosynthetic pigments, ribosomes, DNA, lipid granules and pyrenoids . Unlike the chloroplasts of higher plants, chromatophores are more diverse in shape (can be cup-shaped, ribbon-shaped, lamellar, star-shaped, disc-shaped, etc.), size, number, structure, location and set of photosynthetic pigments.

In shallow water ( green ) algae photosynthetic pigments are mainly chlorophylls a and b, which absorb red and yellow light. U brown algae that live at medium depths, where green and blue light penetrates, the photosynthetic pigments are chlorophylls a and c, as well as arotin and fucoxanthin having a brown color. In red algae, which live at depths of up to 270 m, the photosynthetic pigments are chlorophyll d (characteristic only for this group of plants) and have a reddish color phycobilins- phycoerythrin, phycocyanin and allophycocyanin, which absorb blue and violet rays well.

Pyrenoids- special inclusions that are part of the chromatophore matrix and are a zone of synthesis and accumulation of reserve nutrients.

Algae reserves: starch, glycogen, oils, polysaccharides, etc.

Algae propagation

Algae reproduce asexually and sexually.

❖ Reproductive organs of algae (unicellular):
■ sporangia (organs of asexual reproduction);
■ gametangia (organs of sexual reproduction).

❖ Methods of asexual reproduction of algae: vegetative (thallus fragments) or single-celled zoospores.

❖ Forms of the sexual process in algae:
■ isogamy - fusion of motile gametes of identical structure and size,
■ heterogamy - fusion of mobile gametes of different sizes (the larger one is considered female),
■ oogamy - fusion of a large immobile egg with a sperm,
■ conjugation- fusion of the contents of two unspecialized cells.

The sexual process ends with the formation of a diploid zygote, from which a new individual is formed or motile flagella are formed zoospores , serving for the dispersal of algae.

❖ Features of algae reproduction:
■ in some types of algae, each individual is capable of forming (depending on the time of year or environmental conditions) both spores and gametes;
■ in certain types of algae, the functions of asexual and sexual reproduction are performed by different individuals - sporophytes (they form spores) and gametophytes (they form gametes);
■ in the development cycle of many types of algae (red, brown, some green) there is a strict alternation of generations - sporophyte and gametophyte ;
■ gametes of algae, as a rule, have taxis, which determine the direction of their movement depending on the intensity of light, temperature, etc.;
■ flagellated spores perform amoeboid movement;
■ in seaweed, the release of spores or gametes coincides with the tide; there is no rest period in the development of the zygote (i.e., the zygote begins to develop immediately after fertilization, so as not to be carried away to the sea).

The meaning of algae

❖ Meaning of algae:
■ they produce organic substances through photosynthesis;
■ saturate water with oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide from it;
■ are food for aquatic animals;
■ are the ancestors of plants that colonized the land;
■ participated in the formation of mountain limestone and chalk rocks, some types of coal and oil shale;
■ green algae clean water bodies polluted with organic waste;
■ used by humans as organic fertilizers and feed additives in the diet of animals;
■ used in the biochemical, food and perfume industries for the production of proteins, vitamins, alcohols, organic acids, acetone, iodine, bromine, agar-agar (necessary for the production of marmalade, pastille, soufflé, etc.), varnishes, dyes, glue ;
■ many species are used for human food (kelp, some green and red algae);
■ some types are used in the treatment of rickets, goiter, gastrointestinal and other diseases;
■ sludge from dead algae (sapropel) is used in mud therapy;
■ can cause “blooming” of water.

Green algae

❖ Spirogyra

■ Habitat: fresh standing and slowly flowing reservoirs, where it forms bright green mud; widespread in Belarus.

■ Body Shape: thin thread-like; the cells are arranged in one row.

■ Structural features cells are cylindrical in shape with a well-defined cell wall; covered with a pectin shell and a mucous sheath. The chromatophore is ribbon-shaped, spirally twisted. The vacuole occupies most of the cell. The nucleus is located in the center and is connected by cords to the wall cytoplasm; contains a haploid set of chromosomes.

■ Reproduction: asexual carried out by breaking the thread into short sections; there is no sporulation. Sexual process - conjugation. In this case, two threads of algae are usually located parallel to each other and grow together with the help of copulation processes or bridges. Then the cell membranes at the points of contact of the threads dissolve, forming a through channel through which the contents of one of the cells move into the cell of the other thread and merge with its protoplast, forming a zygote with a dense membrane. The zygote divides by meiosis; 4 nuclei are formed, three of them die; from the remaining cell, after a period of rest, an adult develops.

❖ Ulotrix

■ Habitat: fresh, less often sea and brackish water bodies, soil;