XVI International Botanical Congess

Codium fragile ssp. tomentosoides tips were excised and cut into fragments, resulting in dissociated utricles and medullary filaments. These were maintained in enriched seawater in Petri dishes and in small growth chambers. Utricles and medullary filaments frequently developed biflagellated motile cells, 3-5 and 12-15 micrometers.In no case were both small and large motile cells formed within the same utricle or filament, although in one case, both small and large motile cells were formed within the same filament, although in separate chambers .The larger presumptive female and smaller presumptive male gametes were found in samples from the same plant. When the motile cells were mixed from the same or different plants no zygote formation was observed. This is the first report of motility in Codium outside of the gametangia.