RHODOPHYCE^E, OR FLORIDE^E 207 



NEMALIONACE.E. 



General Characters. The fertilised carpogonium 

 gives rise directly to the gonimoblasts, which form 

 erect or more or less spread out tufts of branches ; 

 these branches in one family (Gelidiece) unite with 

 neighbouring thallus cells or with specially developed 

 auxiliary cells. The order is subdivided into four 

 families, of which the three following are marine ; 

 one, viz. Lemancce, being exclusively freshwater. 



Helminthocladiece. 



The gonimoblast is a short tuft of cell-filaments, 

 either free or within a common gelatinous envelope 

 (ffelminthora) ; as a rule the terminal cells, and ex- 

 ceptionally also some of the cells next adjoining them, 

 form the carpospores. After the terminal cell has 

 emitted its carpospore, the supporting cell grows 

 through it and produces within the old membrane a 

 new spore-forming cell, and this process may proceed 

 until the contents of the gonimoblast are exhausted. 

 The gonimoblast is either external to the thallus or 

 immersed within it, and does not possess a definite 

 cystocarp wall, though sometimes a few enveloping 

 filaments are wrapped about it. One genus, Batracho- 

 spermum is peculiar to fresh-waters, and Chantransia 

 occurs in both marine and fresh-waters. Among the 

 fresh-water species of Chantransia there have been de- 

 scribed a considerable number of sporophytic shoots 

 of Batrachospermwn and protonema-like shoots of 



