Chaetomorpha

Chaetomorpha
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Viridiplantae
Phylum:	Chlorophyta
Class:	Ulvophyceae
Order:	Cladophorales
Family:	Cladophoraceae
Genus:	Chaetomorpha
Species
C. moniligera C. sp. WC C. antennina C. crassa C. linum C. okamurae C. aerea C. brachygona C. spiralis

In taxonomy, Chaetomorpha is a genus of algae, specifically of the Cladophoraceae.^[1]

Aquarium Hobby Usage

Chaetomorpha is especially common in saltwater aquariums because it can be used for removal of nutrients, especially nitrates. Aquarists will commonly house this alga, perhaps with others, in a refugium. Once it has grown to a significant mass, a chunk of the algae is removed to be thrown out or donated to another aquarist, taking the nutrients it has absorbed out of the system. Chaetomorpha is preferred over other macroalgae such as Caulerpa because it is less likely than Caulerpa to undergo sexual reproduction in the aquarium. It is also easy to remove because it will not attach to rocks or substrates. In a study run by Casey Campbell, it was shown that coal bed methane is filtered by chatomoropha, and is made for livable for Daphnia magna, and more research is being done it to its large scale use. In addition to nutrient export, chaetomorpha is known to host beneficial amphipods which can subsequently be used as a food source for corals and animals that may reside within the aquarium.

References

1. ^ See the NCBI webpage on Chaetomorpha. Data extracted from the "NCBI taxonomy resources". National Center for Biotechnology Information. ftp://ftp.ncbi.nih.gov/pub/taxonomy/. Retrieved 2007-03-19. 

External links

Scientific references

• PubMed references for Chaetomorpha
• PubMed Central references for Chaetomorpha
• Google Scholar references for Chaetomorpha

Scientific databases

• NCBI taxonomy page for Chaetomorpha
• Search Tree of Life taxonomy pages for Chaetomorpha
• Search Species2000 page for Chaetomorpha
• AlgaeBase
• AlgaTerra database
• Index Nominum Genericorum