A synopsis of the Characeae'

1964 WOOD: A SYNOPSIS OF THE CHARACEAE 4131b. Dactyls irregular, allantoid to mucroniform; withoutmucus (1) .................................. 2(42) Nitella heteroteles [Af](several taxa may be sought here: N. macounii [NA]—see 21b; N. hookeri [ Aust, Oc]—see 23c).30b. Fertile whorls of modified, reduced branchlets compacted intotight heads; with mucus; primary rays normal, notexceeding 1 / 2 of branchlet length.32a. Dactyls elongate; end cell elongate, often twice as long aspenultimate cell; branchlets very slender .......................................................... 3(43) Nitella myriotricha [Aust, As]32b. Dactyls not elongate; end cells variable but not exceedinglength of penultimate cell; branchlets of normaldiameter.33a. Fertile branchlets (2–)3(-4)-furcate; central secondarybranchlet rays present; monoecious ............................................................... 4(44) Nitella capillata [NA]33b. Fertile branchlets 1(-2)-furcate; branchlets withoutcentral secondary branchlet ray; monoecious ordioecious.34a. Heads spicate; monoecious ............................................................... 5(45) Nitella leptostachys [Aust, Oc]34b. Heads variable, generally spheroid, rarely somewhatspicate; dioecious.35a. Axial internodes shorter than branchlets;sterile branchlets 1-2 (-3 ) -furcate ; 00-spore membrane with 6-8 meshes acrossfossa 6(46) Nitella grovesii [AS]35b. Axial internodes 1-2 times as long as sterilebranchlets ; sterile branchlets (1–) 3(-4)-f urcate; 2-4 meshes across fossa..................... 7(47) Nitella tasmanica2 [Aust, Oc][See N. dualis [As, Af, Aust?], 31a,which has 6-more meshes across fossa.]35c. Axial internodes 1-2 times as long as sterilebranchlets; sterile branchlets 1-2-furcate;oospore membrane (1) ......................................... 8(48) Nitella polycephala [Aust][Two pluricellulate taxa might besought here, N. gracilis subsp. lechleriand subsp. zeyheri.]19c. Dactyls 1-3-, 2-, 2-3-, or 2-5-celled of which the end cell is differentfrom other cells and is not allantoid; end cell a small,tapering, pointed cell ...........................................................................Subgen. 3(5) TIEFFALLENIA (Arthrodactylae, in part, cf. 19b)36a. Medium to large plants; some or all dactyl end cells mucronate,narrower at the base than the rounded end of thepenultimate cell; heads occasionally formed, but withoutmucus ............................. Sect. 1(13) TIEFFALLENIA (Mucronatae)[ A broad group easy to recognize but hard to define so asto clearly differentiate from Sect. Gioallenia, Sect. Tieffalleniaincludes forms resembling the European "N. niucro-2The taxon Nitella gelatinosa A. Br. (nom. illeg.) is here expanded to include N.tasmanica Miill. ex A. Br. Since the former name is illegitimate, the latter becomes thecorrect name. N. tasmanica is here construed to include subsp. tasmanica and subsp.gelatinifera R.D.W., nom. et stat. nov. (basonym: Chara gelatinosa Braun, Linnaea17: 115. 1843; non Roth, Cat. Bot. 3: 125. 1806).