Acanthophora is a genus of marine red algae (Rhodophyta) in the family Rhodomelaceae, order Ceramiales. It was established by the French botanist Jean Vincent Félix Lamouroux in 1813. The genus belongs to the class Florideophyceae, which encompasses the great majority of multicellular red algae.
Members of Acanthophora are exclusively marine organisms, distinguished within the Rhodomelaceae by their branched, cylindrical thalli bearing short, spine-like branchlets — the feature reflected in the genus name (from the Greek for "spine-bearer"). The algae grow attached to hard substrates in shallow coastal and intertidal marine environments across tropical and warm-temperate seas.
The genus has a broad global distribution, with records spanning the Western and Central Indo-Pacific, East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania), the Mediterranean Sea, the Tropical Atlantic, the Lusitanian province of the northeastern Atlantic, Temperate Australasia, Temperate Southern Africa, and the Temperate Northern Pacific.
AlgaeBase lists 26 species and infraspecific names attributed to Acanthophora, of which 7 are currently accepted as taxonomically valid. The most widely studied and ecologically prominent member is Acanthophora spicifera, a cosmopolitan tropical species known as a significant invasive alga in Hawaiian waters, where it was introduced in the 1950s and has since spread across reef flats and shallow coastal habitats.
Etymology
The name Acanthophora derives from the Greek akantha (spine or thorn) and phora (bearing), referring to the characteristic short, spine-like branchlets that arm the thalli of species in this genus. The genus was described by Jean Vincent Félix Lamouroux in 1813.
Distribution
Acanthophora occurs across tropical and warm-temperate marine waters worldwide. WoRMS distribution records document the genus in the Western and Central Indo-Pacific, East Africa, the Mediterranean Sea, the Tropical Atlantic, the Lusitanian northeastern Atlantic, Temperate Southern Africa, Temperate Australasia, and the Temperate Northern Pacific.
Ecology
Species of Acanthophora are benthic marine algae that colonise hard substrates in shallow coastal and intertidal zones. Acanthophora spicifera, the best-documented species, is a noted invasive alga in Hawai'i — introduced in the 1950s, it proliferates on reef flats and can outcompete native algae in disturbed or nutrient-enriched waters.
Taxonomy Notes
The genus Acanthophora J.V.Lamouroux, 1813 (AphiaID 143900) is placed in the family Rhodomelaceae, order Ceramiales, class Florideophyceae, phylum Rhodophyta. AlgaeBase recognises approximately 7 currently accepted species from a historical list of 26 names; the remainder are synonyms or otherwise invalid. The name Acanthophora is also used as a synonym for Aralia (flowering plants) and as a section name within Solanum, so the algal genus should not be confused with those usages.
