It was only when the branching filamentous phase of the green alga Derbesia was cultured that it was determied to be the same species as these little 10 mm 'peas,' previously called 'Halicystis.' These, then, are the sexual phase in the alga's life cycle; they grow only on coralline red algae. Depth 25 m.
Description: Français : Une colonie d'algues Derbesia sp. à la Réunion. Date: 20 February 2010, 08:39:04. Source: The uploader on Wikimedia Commons received this from the author/copyright holder. Author: Philippe Bourjon. Permission(Reusing this file): : This work is free and may be used by anyone for any purpose. If you wish to use this content, you do not need to request permission as long as you follow any licensing requirements mentioned on this page. The Wikimedia Foundation has received an e-mail confirming that the copyright holder has approved publication under the terms mentioned on this page. This correspondence has been reviewed by an Volunteer Response Team (VRT) member and stored in our permission archive. The correspondence is available to trusted volunteers as ticket #2014091910006014. If you have questions about the archived correspondence, please use the OTRS noticeboard. Ticket link: https://ticket.wikimedia.org/otrs/index.pl?Action=AgentTicketZoom&TicketNumber=2014091910006014.