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Chara (alga)

Chara
Temporal range:
Chara globularis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Clade: Viridiplantae
(unranked): Charophyta
Class: Charophyceae
Order: Charales
Family: Characeae
Genus: Chara
L., 1753
Species

See text

Chara is a genus of charophyte green algae in the family Characeae. They are multicellular and superficially resemble land plants because of stem-like and leaf-like structures. They are found in freshwater, particularly in limestone areas throughout the northern temperate zone, where they grow submerged, attached to the muddy bottom. They prefer less oxygenated and hard water and are not found in waters where mosquito larvae are present.[2] They are covered with calcium carbonate (CaCO3) deposits and are commonly known as stoneworts. Cyanobacteria have been found growing as epiphytes on the surfaces of Chara, where they may be involved in fixing nitrogen, which is important to plant nutrition.[3]

Light micrograph of unidentified cyanobacteria and other biofilm organisms growing as epiphytes on the surface of Chara species in a rice paddy in Louisiana, US
  1. ^ Palmer, Douglas; et al. (2009), Prehistoric Life: The Definitive Visual History of Life on Earth (first American ed.), Dorling Kindersley, p. 419, ISBN 978-0-7566-5573-0
  2. ^ Barber, M. A. (1924). "The Effect of Chara Robbinsii on Mosquito Larvæ". Public Health Reports. 39 (13): 611–615. doi:10.2307/4577099. ISSN 0094-6214. JSTOR 4577099.
  3. ^ Sims, G. K.; Dunigan, E. P. (1984). "Diurnal and seasonal variations in nitrogenase activity (C2H2 reduction) of rice roots". Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 16: 15–18. doi:10.1016/0038-0717(84)90118-4.

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