Spirotaenia

Not to be confused with Spirogyra.

Spirotaenia is a genus of basal unicellular green algae that may be sister to the Chlorokybophyceae.^[1][2] It was previously considered to be part of the Zygnemataceae. It is sexually conjugating, a mode of reproduction that was previously only known in the Zygnemataceae/Mesotaeniaceae, the sister groups to the land plants. This is surprising, as Spirotaenia is much more basal. The conjugating process is substantially aberrant.^{[further explanation needed][3][4]} Spirotaenia may actually be more than one distinct lineage which may not be closely related.^[5]

Spirotaenia
Spirotaenia condensata
Scientific classification
(unranked):	Archaeplastida
Kingdom:	Viridiplantae
Genus:	Spirotaenia Brébisson 1848
Type species
Spirotaenia condensata Brébisson 1848
Synonyms
Entospira Kuntze 1898 Endospira Brébisson 1850

Phylogeny

Viridiplantae Prasinodermophyta Palmophyllophyceae (prasinophyte clade VI) Prasinodermophyceae Chlorophyta Streptophytes Mesostigmatophyta: Mesostigmatophyceae Chlorokybophyceae Spirotaenia Klebsormidiophyceae Charophyceae Coleochaetophyceae Zygnematophyceae Embryophytes Plantae

"Green algae"