Belongs within: Fucophycidae.
The Acinetosporaceae are a family of brown algae that mostly grow as uniseriate filaments.
Characters (Norris 2010): Uniseriate filaments, either sparsely and irregularly branched or more densely branched and of variable branching patterns. Growing as epiphytes or attached on hard substratum. Branches often formed from middle of an axial cell (appearing perpendicular to it), with rounded or tapered and hairlike apices; occasionally developing short, curved laterals (crampons) that attach to or become entangled with other algae. Intercalary meristematic growth regions basal, usually near base of laterals, or diffuse. Cells with numerous plastids, each with a pyrenoid. Reproduction by fragmentation may occur. Ovoid monosporangia, if present, producing and releasing single nonmotile spore. Unilocular and plurilocular sporangia sessile, short-stalked, or intercalary (formed by direct transformation of vegetative cells). Plurilocular structures with large locules (zoosporangia) or with numerous small locules. Plurilocular gametangia of different shapes and sizes may be present, producing isogametes or anisogametes.
Acinetosporaceae [Pylaiellaceae]N10
|--Pylaiella Bory de Saint-Vincent 1823 (nom. cons.)SRR14 [=Pilayella (nom. rej.)N10]
| |--P. gardneri Collins 1912AH76
| |--P. littoralis (Lyngbye) Kjellman 1872N10 (see below for synonymy)
| |--P. ramellosa (Kützing) Kuck. 1891L27
| | |--P. r. var. ramellosaL27
| | `--P. r. var. novae-zelandiae Grunow 1870L27
| |--P. rupurcolaCS77
| |--P. tenella Setchell & Gardner 1922S57
| `--P. washingtoniensis Jao 1937S57
`--+--Herponema Agardh 1882SRR14
| |--H. maculans Agardh 1872L27
| |--H. pulvinata (Harvey) Agardh 1872L27
| `--H. velutinumSRR14
`--Hincksia Gray 1864SRR14, N10 [incl. Giffordia Batters 1893N10]
|--H. bryantii (Setchell & Gardner) Norris 2010 [=Ectocarpus bryantii Setchell & Gardner 1924]N10
|--H. granulosa (Smith) Silva in Silva, Meñez & Moe 1987N10 (see below for synonymy)
|--‘Ectocarpus’ hincksiae Harvey 1841 [=Giffordia hincksiae (Harvey) Hamel 1939]AH76
| |--E. h. var. hincksiaeAH76
| `--‘Giffordia’ h. var. californica Hollenberg & Abbott 1968AH76
|--H. mitchelliae (Harvey) Silva in Silva, Meñez & Moe 1987 (see below for synonymy)N10
|--H. rallsiae (Vickers) Silva in Silva et al. 1987N10
|--H. ramulosaG64
|--‘Ectocarpus’ sandrianus Zanardini 1843 (see below for synonymy)AH76
`--‘Ectocarpus’ saundersii Setchell & Gardner 1922 (see below for synonymy)AH76
Acinetosporaceae incertae sedis:
Acinetospora Bornet 1891N10
|--A. crinita (Carmichael) Kornmann 1953 [incl. *A. pusilla (Griffiths ex Harvey) De Toni 1895]N10
`--A. nicholsoniae Hollenberg 1971AH76
Feldmannia Hamel 1939N10 [incl. Masonophycus Setchell & Gardner 1930SRR14; Masonophycaceae]
|--*F. lebelii (Areschoug) Hamel 1939 [=Ectocarpus lebelii Areschoug ex Crouan & Crouan 1867]N10
|--F. acuminata (Saunders) Hollenberg & Abbott 1966 [=Ectocarpus acuminatus Saunders 1898]AH76
|--F. chitonicola (Saunders) Levring 1960 [=Ectocarpus chitonicola Saunders 1898]AH76
|--F. cylindrica (Saunders) Hollenberg & Abbott 1966 (see below for synonymy)AH76
|--F. globifera (Kützing) Hamel 1939 [=Ectocarpus globifer Kützing 1843]AH76
|--F. hemisphaerica (Saunders) Hollenberg 1971N10 [=Ectocarpus hemisphericus Saunders 1898AH76]
|--F. indica (Sonder) Womersley & Bailey 1970HS14
|--F. irregularis (Kützing) Hamel 1939N10 (see below for synonymy)
`--F. rhizoidea Hollenberg & Abbott 1968AH76
Geminocarpus Skottsberg 1907SRR14
Internoretia Setchell & Gardner 1920SRR14
`--I. fryeana Setchell & Gardner 1920SRR14
Pogotrichum Reinke 1892SRR14
‘Ectocarpus’ sandrianus Zanardini 1843 [=Giffordia sandriana (Zanardini) Hamel 1939; incl. E. granulosoides Setchell & Gardner 1922]AH76
‘Ectocarpus’ saundersii Setchell & Gardner 1922 [=Giffordia saundersii (Setchell & Gardner) Hollenberg & Abbott 1966; incl. E. paradoxus var. pacificus Saunders 1898]AH76
Feldmannia cylindrica (Saunders) Hollenberg & Abbott 1966 [=Ectocarpus cylindricus Saunders 1898; incl. E. cylindricus var. codiophilus Setchell & Gardner 1922, E. flocculiformis Setchell & Gardner 1922, E. socialis Setchell & Gardner 1922]AH76
Feldmannia irregularis (Kützing) Hamel 1939N10 [=Ectocarpus irregularis Kützing 1845N10, Giffordia irregularis (Kützing) Joly 1965N10, Hincksia irregularis (Kützing) Amsler in Schneider & Searles 1991N10; incl. Ectocarpus coniferus Børgesen 1914AH76, Giffordia conifera (Børgesen) Taylor 1960AH76, E. mucronatus Saunders 1898N10]
Hincksia granulosa (Smith) Silva in Silva, Meñez & Moe 1987N10 [=Conferva granulosa Smith 1811N10, Ectocarpus granulosus (Smith) Agardh 1824N10, Giffordia granulosa (Smith) Hamel 1939N10, Sphaerophorus granulosusG64; incl. Ectocarpus oviger Harvey 1862AH76]
Hincksia mitchelliae (Harvey) Silva in Silva, Meñez & Moe 1987 [=Ectocarpus mitchelliae Harvey 1852, Giffordia mitchelliae (Harvey) Hamel 1939]N10
Pylaiella littoralis (Lyngbye) Kjellman 1872N10 [=Conferva littoralis Linnaeus 1753AH76, Ectocarpus littoralisS57, Pilayella littoralisKM03]
*Type species of generic name indicated
References
[AH76] Abbott, I. A., & G. J. Hollenberg. 1976. Marine Algae of California. Stanford University Press.
[CS77] Cramp, S., & K. E. L. Simmons (eds) 1977. Handbook of the Birds of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa: The Birds of the Western Palaearctic vol. 1. Ostrich to Ducks. Oxford University Press: Oxford.
[G64] Gray, J. E. 1864. Handbook of British Water-weeds or Algae. R. Hardwicke: London.
[HS14] Huisman, J. M., & A. Sampey. 2014. Kimberley marine biota. Historical data: marine plants. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 84: 45–67.
[KM03] Kawai, H., S. Maeba, H. Sasaki, K. Okuda & E. C. Henry. 2003. Schizocladia ischiensis: a new filamentous marine chromophyte belonging to a new class, Schizocladiophyceae. Protist 154: 211–228.
[L27] Laing, R. M. 1927. A reference list of New Zealand marine algae. Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute 57: 126–185.
[N10] Norris, J. N. 2010. Marine algae of the northern Gulf of California: Chlorophyta and Phaeophyceae. Smithsonian Contributions to Botany 94: 1–276.
[S57] Scagel, R. F. 1957. An annotated list of the marine algae of British Columbia and northern Washington (including keys to genera). National Museum of Canada Bulletin 150: 1–289.
[SRR14] Silberfeld, T., F. Rousseau & B. de Reviers. 2014. An updated classification of brown algae (Ochrophyta, Phaeophyceae). Cryptogamie, Algologie 35 (2): 117–156.