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Glossary of Technical Terms
Glossary of Technical Terms in this website
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
- Aculeate
- having sharp points
- Acute
- sharp at the end
- Acuminate
- of a leaf shape; narrowing to a slender point
- Alga (plural, algae)
- a plant that reproduces using spores; algae lack true vascular tissues, flowers and seeds
- Alternate/alternately
- placed singly at different direction on the axis
- Amorphous/amorphously
- having no definite form or distinct shape
- Annulate
- circular or ring-like formation
- Annulus (plural, annuli)
- ring-shaped;
- Antheridium (plural, antheridia)
- a male reproductive apparatus in which spermatozoids are produced
- Apex (plural, apices)
- the tip, top, or angular summit of plant body
- Apical
- at an apex or tip
- Axis (plural: axes)
- central part of an alga on which the branches are arranged
B
- Barrel-shaped
- shape resembles a barrel
- Bifurcate
- divided or separated into two branches
- Blade
- a broad and flat part of algae
- Brackish water
- slightly salty water; 0.5-30 ppt of salinity
- Branchlet
- a small branch or division of a branch
- Brittle
- having little elasticity; easily cracked or fractured
- Bulbous
- bulb-like in shape
C
- Calcification
- tissue hardened by deposition of calcium
- Calcified
- made calcareous or hardened by the deposition of calcium
- Cap
- an upper limit
- Cartilaginous
- having an elasticity resembling gristle
- Chlorophyll
- green pigments found in photosynthetic organisms
- Chloroplast
- organelle in cells of the plants having role of photosynthesis
- Clavate/club-shape
- take the shape of a club
- Clump
- a mass of the same species
- Coarse
- large-grained
- Concave
- curving inward
- Concentric
- circles sharing the center
- Coriaceous
- resembling leather
- Crusty
- having a hard exterior
- Cudgel-shaped
- the shape resembles a cudgel
- Current
- a stream; body of fluid moving continuously in a certain direction
- Cylindrical
- having the form of a cylinder
D
- Decumbent
- lying down on the substrate
- Dichotomous/dichotomously
- branched into two similar parts
- Discoid/discoidal
- having a flat disk shape
- Distichously
- alternately arranged in two vertical rows on opposite sides of an axis or leaf
- Duplicated
- to be double
E
- Elastic
- capable of resuming original shape after stretching or compression
- Elasticity
- the tendency of a body to return to its original shape after it has been stretched or compressed
- Elliptic/elliptical
- egg-shaped, oval
- Entire
- having a smooth edge
- Entwisted
- to twist into or together
- Epiphyte
- seaweed lives on other plants however does not get its nourishment from them
- Erose
- irregularly toothed, as if nibbled out or gnawed
F
- Fan-shaped
- a circular sector shape
- Fibrous
- having or resembling thread-like fibers
- Filament
- a slender, thread-like row of plant cells
- Filamentous
- thin in diameter; resembling a thread
- Filiform
- having the shape of a thread or filament
- Flabellate/flabelliform
- fan-shaped; broad and round at the top, narrowed below like a fan
- Fluorescence
- brilliantly color
- Forked
- divided into two ways
- Fusiform
- spindle-shaped; tapering at each end
G
- Ginkgo-shaped
- fan-shaped
- Gravel
- crushed rock; rock fragments and pebbles
H
- Hemisphere/hemispherical
- half of a sphere
- Holdfast
- basal organ where stem or branch attach to
- Hollow
- not solid; having a space
I
- Indusium (plural, indusia)
- a membrane enclosing and protecting the sorus
- Indusiate
- having indusium
- Intertidal zone
- the area of the shore between the uppermost and lowermost tidal levels
- Intricate/intricately
- to entangle
K
- Kidney-shaped
- resembling a kidney's shape
- Knot-shaped
- resembles a knot
L
- Lanceolate
- leaf shape; narrow and tapering to a pointed apex
- Linear/linear-shaped
- leaf shape; long and narrow
- Lobe-shaped
- shape resembles an earlobe
- Lubricious
- having a smooth or slippery surface
M
- Membranous
- shape resembles a film
- Midrib
- continuation of the petiole, extending from the base to the apex of the lamina on a leaf
N
- Node
- joint of an axis or branch
- Nucleus (plural, nuclei)
- a part of the cell containing DNA and RNA
O
- Oblong
- leaf shape; having a somewhat elongated form with two to three times as long as wide and approximately parallel sides
- Obovate
- leaf shape; egg-shaped with the narrower end at the base
- Obtuse
- leaf shape; rounded at the apex
- Oogonium (plural, oogonia)
- a female reproductive apparatus in which eggs (ova) are produced
P
- Paniculated/paniculatedly
- occurring in panicles
- Perforation
- a hole
- Phyllocyst
- vesicle with wing
- Pinnate/pinnately
- feather-like; with branchlets on each side
- Polygonal
- has many angles
- Prostrate
- lies at full length along the substrate
R
- Ramiform
- has the form of a branch
- Reniform
- shape resembles a kidney
- Reef
- a submerged ridge of rock or coral near the surface of the water
- Reef flat
- shallow and calm area behind the reef
- Reticulate
- net-like; having the form or appearance of a net
- Rhizoid/rhizoidal
- root-like structure for attach
- Runner
- creeping stolon
S
- Segment
- one of several parts or pieces that fit with constitutes a part of a whole plant
- Serration
- sharp small teeth-like projections
- Sickle-shaped
- shape resembles a sickle; slightly curved and tapered
- Slick
- has a smooth surface
- Solid
- not hollow; full of matter
- Sorus (plural, sori)
- a spore-producing structure
- Spherical
- has the shape of a sphere or ball
- Spine
- a sharp-pointed projection
- Sponge
- primitive marine animal whose porous body is soft and elasticity
- Sporangia
- a spore case
- Sporangial ray
- reproductive portions producing spore
- Stalk/stem/stipe
- a slender or elongated structure that supports a plant
- Stipulode
- a spine-like cell formed at basement node of branchlet of the plant blong to Characeae
- Stolon
- a horizontal branch from the base of plant that produces a new plant
- Strap-shaped
- shape resembles a strap
- Substrate
- a solid object which algae attach to
- Subtidal zone
- the area of the shoreline below the lowest low-tide water level
- Symbiotic
- having relation between two different species of organisms that are interdependent
T
- Taper/tapered/tapering
- gradually narrowed toward a point
- Terete
- cylindrical and slightly tapering
- Thallus (plural, thalli)
- a plant body of algae
- Tidal pool
- a shallow or deep pool in the intertidal zone that remains flooded even during the lowest tide
- Trichotomous/trichotomously
- branched triangularly with three similar parts
- Triquetrous
- has three salient angles or edges
- Trumpet-shape
- shape resemble to trumpet
- Truncated
- terminating abruptly without apex
- Twisted
- wrenched out of normal shape
U
- Undulated
- waves obtusely up and down
- Uniseriate
- arranged in a single series of cells
- Utricle
- small sac-like part of body
V
- Vesicle
- a small bladder-like structure
W
- Wedge-shaped
- wider at the apex and tapes toward the base
- Whorl
- a circlar shape formed by a series of concentric circles