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History of phycology (view source)
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[[Image:ViennaDioscoridesPlant.jpg|thumb|250px|'''[[Vienna Dioscurides]]''' illustration, 6th century]]
'''[[Phycology]]''' is the study of marine [[algae]] (e.g. [[seaweeds]]) and [[history]] is the study of the past [[human]] activities. Man's interest in plants as food goes back into the origins of the species (''[[Homo sapiens]]'') and knowledge of algae can be traced back more than two thousand years. However only in the last three hundred years has that knowledge developed into a rapidly developing [[science]].
==Early days==
[[Image:Arabic_herbal_medicine_guidebook.jpeg|thumb|250px|'''[[Dioscorides]]’ De [[Materia Medica]]''', c. 1334 copy in [[Arabic]], describes medicinal features of [[cumin]] and [[dill]].]]
The study of [[botany]] goes back into pre-history as [[plants]] were the food of people from the beginning of time. The first attempts at plant cultivation are believed to have been made shortly before 10,000 BC in Western [[Asia]] (Morton, 1981)<ref name="Morton 81">'''Morton, A.G.''' 1981 ''History of Botanical Science.'' Academic Press Inc. (London) Ltd. ISBN: 0-12-508380-7</ref> and the first references to algae are to be found in early [[Chinese literature]]. Records as far back as 3,000 BC indicate that algae were used by the emperor of [[China]] as food. (Huisman, 2000 p.13).<ref name="Huisman 00">'''Huisman, J.M.''' 2000. ''Marine Plants of Australia.'' University of Western Australia Press, Australia. ISBN 1 876268 33 6</ref> The use of ''[[Porphyra]]'' in China dates back to at least A.D. 533 — 44 (Mumfard and Miura, 1988), <ref name ="Mumford and Miura, 1988">'''Mumford, T.F. and Miura, A.''' 1988. 4. p.87 — 117. ''Porphyra'' as food: cultivation and economics. in Lembi, C.A. and Waaland, J.R. 1988. ''Algae and Human Affairs.'' Cambridge University Press, Cambridge ISBN 0-521-32115-8</ref> there are also references in Roman and Greek literature. The Greek word for algae was "Phycos" whilst in [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] times the name became ''[[Fucus]]''. There are early references to the use of algae for [[manure]]. The first [[coralline algae]] to be recognized as living organisms were probably ''Corallina'', by [[Pliny the Elder]] in the first century AD (Irvine and Chamberlain, 1994 p.11).<ref>'''Irvine, L.M. and Chamberlain, Y.M.''' 1994. ''Seaweeds of the British Isles. Volume 1, Rhodophyta Part 2B Corallinales, Hildenbrandiales''. Natural History Museum, London. ISBN 0 11 3100167</ref>
The classification of plants suffered many changes since [[Theophrastus]] (372 - 287 B.C.) and [[Aristotle]] (384 - 322 B.C.) grouped them as "[[trees]]", "[[shrubs]]" and "[[herbs]]" (Smith, 1955 p.1).<ref name="Smith 55"> '''Smith, G.M. ''' 1955. ''Cryptogamic Botany. Volume 1. Algae and Fungi.'' McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York.,</ref>
Little is known of botany during the [[Middle Ages]] - it was the dark ages of botany.<ref name="Morton 81"/>
The development of the study of phycology runs in a pattern comparable with, and parallel to, other biological fields but at a different rate. After the invention of the [[printing-press]] in the 15th century (with the publication of the first printed book: Gutenberg's ''Bible'' of 1488) <ref name="Hawksworth, and Seaward 77">'''Hawksworth, D.L and Seaward, M.R.D.''' 1977. ''Lichenology in the British Isles 1568 - 1975'' The Richmond Publishing Co. Ltd. ISBN 0 85546 200 0</ref> education enabled people to read and knowledge to spread. Interest in algae then increased speedily.
===The exploration of the world and the advance of knowledge===
Written accounts of the algae of [[South Africa]] were made by the Portuguese explorers of the 15th and 16th centuries, however it is not clear to which species reference was being made (Huisman, 2000 p.7).<ref name="Huisman 00">'''Huisman, J.M.''' 2000. ''Marine Plants of Australia.'' University of Western Australia Press; Australia Biological Resources Study. ISBN 1 876268 33 6</ref>
==17th Century==
In the 17th Century there was a great awakening of scientific interest all over [[Europe]], and after the invention of the printing-press books on botany were published. Among them was the work of [[John Ray]][http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/ray.html] who wrote in 1660: ''Catalogus Plantarum circa Cantabrigiam.'', this initiated a new era in the study of Botany (Smith, 1975 p.4).<ref name="Smith 75">'''Smith, A.L.''' 1975. ''Lichens''. The Richmond Publishing Co. Ltd. England </ref> Ray "influenced both the theory and the practice of botany more decisively than any other single person in the latter half of the seventeenth century" (Morton, 1981).<ref name="Morton 81"/>
However no real progress was made in the scientific study of algae until the invention of the [[microscope]] - in about 1600. It was [[Anton van Leeuwenhoek]] (1632 — 1723) who discovered [[bacteria]] and saw the cell structure of plants. His unsystematic glimpses of plant structure, reported to the [[Royal Society]] between 1678 and his death in 1723, produced no significant advances (Morton, 1981 p.180).<ref name="Morton 81"/>
As adventurers explored the world more species of all [[animals]] and plants were discovered, this demanded efforts to bring order out of this quickly accumulating knowledge.
'''Australia'''
The first [[Australia]]n marine plant recorded in print was collected from [[Shark Bay]] on the Western Australian coast by William Dampier who described many new species of Australian wildlife in the 17th century (Huisman, 2000 p.7).<ref name="Huisman 00">'''Huisman, J.M.''' 2000. ''Marine Plants of Australia.'' University of Western Australia Press; Australia Biological Resources Study ISBN 1 876268 33 6</ref>
==18th Century==
Before [[Carl von Linné]] (1707 — 1778) animals and plants, had names, but it took him to arrange the names and group the [[plants]] of this [[Earth]] in some sort of order. [[Carolus Linnaeus]] (Carl von Linné) [http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/linnaeus.html] was a Swedish botanist, the son of a pastor of the Lurtheran church, a physician and [[zoologist]]. He laid the foundations of modern biological [[systematics]] and [[Scientific classification|nomenclature]] in his ''Species Plantarum'' (1753).<ref name=<"Linnaeus 53"> '''Linnaeus, C.''' 1753 ''Species plantarum...,'' 2 vols. Salvius, Stackholm.</ref> He adopted and popularized a [[Binomial nomenclature|binomial]] (or binary) system of designation (Morton, 1981)<ref name="Morton 81"/> using one name as the [[genus]] and a second name as the [[species]] name both in Latin or ''Latinised''. This specific name he referred to as a trivial name ''nomen triviale'' consisting of a single word, normally a Latin adjective, but any single word would suffice, to identify a particular species, but not intended to describe it. He developed a coherent system for naming organisms and divided the plant kingdom into 25 classes (according to Smith p.1 and p.24 according to Dixon, 1973) (Smith, 1955 p.1).<ref name="Smith 55">'''Smith,G.M.''' 1955. ''Cryptogamic Botany.'' Vol. 1. McGraw-Hill, New York </ref> <ref name="Dixon, 73">'''Dixon, P.S.''' 1973. ''Biology of the Rhodophyta.'' Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh. ISBN 0 05 002485X</ref> one of which, the ''Cryptogamia'', included all plants with ''concealed'' reproductive organs. He divided the Cryptogamia into four orders: [[Filices]], Musci ([[mosses]]), [[Algae]] - which included [[lichens]] and [[liverworts]] and [[fungi]]. (Smith, 1955 p.1)<ref name="Smith 55"/> [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/linnean_taxonomy]
Examination for the reproductive structures had already started. In 1711, R.A.F de [[Réaumur]] gave an account of ''[[Fucus]]'' in which noted the two types of external openings in the thallus: the non-sexual cryptostromata (sterile surface cavities) and the conceptacles (fertile cavities, immersed but with a surface opening) containing the sexual organs, which he thought were female flowers. With a lens he was able to see the oogonoa (the female sex organs) and the antheridia (the male sex organs) within the conceptacles, but he interpreted these as seeds (Morton, 1981 p.245).<ref name="Morton 81"/> [[Johann Hedwig]] (1730 — 1799) provided further evidence of the sexual process in algae, and figured conjugation in ''[[Spirogyra]]'' Hedwig in 1797. He also illustrated ''Chara'' (''[[Charales]]'') and identified the antheridia and oogonia as male and female sexual organs (Morton, 1981 p.323 & 357).<ref name="Morton 81"/>
During the 18th Century there was a stormy controversy as to whether coralline algae were plants or animals. Up to the mid — 1700s coralline algae (and coral animals) were generally treated as plants. By 1768 many, but by no means all authorities, considered them animal. Five years later, Harvey concluded that they were certainly of vegetable material he noted: "The question of the vegetable nature of Corallines, among which the ''Melobesia'' take rank, may now be considered as finally set at rest, by the researches of Kützing, Phillipi and Decaisne." (Harvey,1847, pl. 73).<ref name="Harvey 47">'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1847. ''Phycologia Britannica.'' Vol. 1, Fasc.13 (plates 73 — 78) Reeve & Benham, London, London.</ref><ref name="Woelkerling 88">'''Woelkerling, Wm. J.''' 1988 ''The Coralline Red Algae:...'' British Museum (Natural History), Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-854249-6</ref>
The first scientific species description of a '''[[South African]]''' seaweed accepted for most nomenclatural purposes is that of ''Ecklonia maxima'', published in 1757 as ''Fucus maximus'' (Stegenga ''et al'', 1997). <ref name="Stegenga 97"> '''Stegenga, H., Bolton, J.J. and Anderson, R.J.''' 1997. ''Seaweeds of the South African West Coast.'' Bolus Herbarium, University of Cape Town. ISBN 0-7992-1793-X</ref>
Knowledge of '''[[North America]]n''' [[Pacific]] algae begins with the 1791 — 95 expedition of Captain [[George Vancouver]] (Papenfuss,1976 p.21).<ref name="Papenfuss">'''Papenfuss, G.F.''' pp.21 — 46 Landmarks in Pacific North American Marine Phycology in Abbott, I.A. and Hollenberg, G.J. 1976. ''Marine Algae of California.'' Stanford University Press, California.ISBN 0-8047-0867-3</ref>
[[Archibald Menzies]] (1754 — 1842) was the appointed botanist on the expedition led by Captain George Vancouver in the ships ''Discovery'' and ''Chatham'' of 1791 — 1795 to the [[Pacific]] coast of [[North America]] and south-western Australia. The algae collected by Menzies were passed to Dawson Turner (1775 — 1858) who described and illustrated them in a four-volumed work published in 1808 — 1819. However Turner only referred to the [[taxa]] referable to ''[[Fucus]]''; either Menzies collected very few or he gave only a few to Turner. Three of these species described by Turner later became the types of new [[genera]] (Papenfuss, 1976)<ref name="Papenfuss"/> and (Huisman, 2000) <ref name="Huisman 00"/> Turner also received plants from [[Robert Brown]] (1773 — 1858) the botanist who accompanied Captain Matthew Flinders on the ''Investigator'' (1801 - 1805). This collection also included many plants from Australia (Huisman, 2000). <ref name="Huisman 00"/>
The real awakening of interest in American algae resulted from a visit by [[William Henry Harvey]] in 1849 — 1850 when he visited areas from [[Florida]] to [[Nova Scotia]] and produced three volumes of ''Nereis Boreali-Americana.'' These gave an incentive to others to study algae (Taylor, 1972 p.21).<ref name=''Taylor 72''>'''Taylor,W.R.''' 1972 ''Marine Algae of the Northeastern Coast of North America.'' Ann Arbor, Mich ISBN 0-472-04904-6</ref>
The first collector of marine algae in [[Greenland]] waters seems to have been J.M.Vahl who lived in Greenland from 1828 to 1836. Vahl's East Greenland species were not recorded until 1893 when Rosenvinge included them in his work of 1893 together with the species collected by Sylow (Lund, 1959). <ref name="Lund 59"> '''Lund,S.''' 1959. The Marine Algae of East Greenland I. Taxonomic part. ''Meddr Gronland'' '''156''': 1 — 248 </ref> F.R.Kjellman records only 12 species from East Greenland 4 of which are doubtful, these records are based on Zeller's list (Lund, 1959).<ref name="Lund 59"/>
==Early 19th Century==
[[Carl Adolph Agardh]] was one of the most prominent algologists of all time, he was born in Sweden on 23 January 1785 and died on 28th January 1859. He was Professor of Botany at the [[University of Lund]] and later [[Bishop]] of Karlstad Diocese (Papenfuss, 1976).<ref name="Papenfuss"/> Many species still show his name as the authority of the scientific name. He traveled widely in [[Europe]] visiting [[Germany]], [[Poland]], [[Denmark]], the [[Netherlands]], [[Belgium]], [[France]] and [[Italy]] and was the first to emphasize the importance of the reproductive characters of algae and use them to distinguish the different genera and families. His son, [[Jacob Georg Agardh]] (1813 — 1901), who became Professor of Botany at [[Lund]] in 1839, made a study of the life-histories of algae, described many new genera and species. It was to him that many workers sent specimens for determination and as donations. Because of this the herbarium at Lund is the most important algal [[herbaria]] in the world (Papenfuss, 1976). <ref name="Papenfuss"/>
The first records of algae from the Faeröes were made by Jorgen Landt in his book of 1800 where he mentions about 30 species. Following this Hans Christian Lyngbye visited the Faeröes in 1817 and published his work in 1819. In this he described several new genera and species, some 100 new species were listed. E.Rostrup who visited the Faeöes in 1867 listed ten new species and a total not far from 100. In 1895 Herman G. Simmons mentioned 125 species, in that year F. Börgesen (1866 - 1956) started work and in 1902 published his work (Börgesen, 1902 p.399 — 343).<ref name="Börgesen,02">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1902. The marine algae of the Faeröes. ''Bot. of the Faeröes.'' Part II. Copenhagen</ref>
Jean Vincent Félix Lamouroux (1779 — 1825) was the first, in 1813, to separate the algae into groups on the basis of colour (Dixon and Irvine, 1977 p.59).<ref name="Dixon and Irvine 77">'''Dixon, P.S. and Irvine, L.M.''' 1977. ''Seaweeds of the British Isles. Vol.1. Rhodophyta. Part 1.'' British Museum [Natural History], London. ISBN 0 565 007815</ref> At this time all coralline algae were considered [[animals]], it was R. Philippi who in 1837 published his paper in which he finally recognized that coralline algae were not animals and he proposed the generic names ''Lithophyllum'' and ''Lithothamnion'' (Irvine and Chamberlain, 1994 p.11).<ref name="Irvine and Chamberlain 94">'''Irvine, L.M. and Chamberlain, Y.M.''' 1994. ''Seaweeds of the British Isles Vol.1. Part 2B.'' Natural History Museum, London. ISBN 0 11 3100167</ref>
Freshwater algae are commonly treated separately from marine algae and may be considered not correctly placed in phycology. [[Lewis Weston Dillwyn]] (1778 — 1855) "British Confervae" (1809) was one of the earliest attempts to bring together all that was then known on the British Freshwater algae .<ref name="West and Fritsch 27"> '''West, G.S. and Fritsch, F.E.''' 1927. ''A Treastise on the British Freshwater Algae.'' Cambridge University Press, Cambridge</ref>
Specimens of Anne E. Ball (1808 - 1872) have been found in both the [[Herbarium]] of the [[Irish National Botanic Gardens]], Dublin [http://www.botanicgardens.ie/herb/herb.htm] and the [[Ulster Museum]] (BEL). A.E.Ball was an Irish algologist who corresponded with W.H. Harvey and whose records appear in his ''Phycologia Britannica.'' The specimens in Dublin do not contain any unusual or rare items. However, they are well documented.<ref name="Parkes and Scannell 70">'''Parkes, H.M. and Scannell, M.J.P.''' 1970. Anne E. Ball, two volumes of algae in Herbarium. National Botanic Gardens, Dublin. ''Ir Nat. J.'' '''16''': 349</ref>
==W.H. Harvey==
[[Willian Henry Harvey]] (1811 — 1866) was Keeper of the [[Herbarium]] and Professor in [[Botany]] at [[Trinity College, Dublin]], and was one of the most distinguished algologists of his time (Papenfuss, 1976 p.26). <ref name="Papenfuss"/> Apart from [[Ireland]] he visited [[South Africa]], the Atlantic seaboard of [[North America|America]] as far south as the [[Florida Keys]] on the east coast of [[North America]] and [[Australia]] (1854 — 1856). Between 1853 to 1856 he visited [[Ceylon]], [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]] and various parts of the South Pacific (Huisman, 2000 & Papenfuss, 1976).<ref name="Huisman 00"/> <ref name="Papenfuss"/> His collection in Australia resulted in one of the most extensive collections of marine plants and it inspired others (Huisman, 2000).<ref name="Huisman 00"/> He published: ''Nereis Australis Or Algae of the Southern Ocean'' in 1847 - 1849 and in 1846 — 51 his ''Phycologia Britannica'' appeared. His ''Nereis Boreali-Americana'' was published in three parts (1852 — 1858) this was the first, and still is (1976)is the only marine algal flora of North America as it includes taxa from the [[Pacific]] coast (Papenfuss, 1976 p.27). <ref name="Papenfuss"/> His five-volume ''[[Phycologia Australica]]'' was published in 1858 to 1863. These volumes remain to this day a most important reference to Australian algae (Huisman, 2000). <ref name="Huisman 00"/> His primary herbarium is in Trinity College, Dublin (TCD). However large collections of Harvey material are to be found in the [[Ulster Museum]] (BEL) (Morton, 1977 & Morton, 1981)<ref name="Morton 77">'''Morton, O.''' 1977. A note on W.H.Harvey's algae in the Ulster Museum. ''Ir.Nat.J.'' '''19''':26</ref><ref name="Morton, O. 81">'''Morton, O.''' 1981. American algae collected by W.H.Harvey and others, in the Ulster Museum Herbarium. ''Taxon'': '''30''':867 — 868</ref>; [[University of St Andrews]] (STA) and National Herbarium of Victoria (MEL), Melbourne, Australia (May, 1977). <ref name="May 77">'''May, V.''' 1977 Harvey's Australian Algae at the National Herbarium of New South Wales (NSW), Sydney, Australia. ''Taxon'': '''26''': 496</ref> Many of the collectors of this period sent, and exchanged, specimens freely one to another, as a result Harvey's books show a remarkable knowledge of the distribution of algae elsewhere in the world. His ''Phycologia Britannica'' lists species recorded and collected from various parts of the [[British Isles]]. For example he notes [[William Thompson (naturalist)|William Thompson]] (1805 — 1852), W. McCalla (c.1814 — 1849), John Templeton (1766 — 1825) and D. Landsborough (1779 — 1854) who collected, as he did, from distinct sites in [[Ireland]]. The collections of these botanists, and many others, are represented separately by collections in the [[Ulster Museum]] (BEL).
Sir [[William Jackson Hooker]] (1785 — 1865) was a life-long friend of Harvey (Papenfuss, 1976 p.26), he was appointed Professor of Botany at [[Glasgow University]] in 1820 and became Director in [[Kew]] 1841 — 1865. Hooker recognized the talent in Harvey and lent him books, encouraged and invited him to write the section on algae in his ''British Flora.'' as well as the section on algae for ''The Botany of Captain Beechey's Voyage'' (Papenfuss, 1976).<ref name="Papenfuss"/> Margaret Gatty (1809 — 1873) (née Margaret Scott) (author of ''British Seaweeds'', 1863), and others, corresponded with William Henry Harvey (Desmond, 1977 and Evans, 2003). <ref name="Desmond 77"> '''Desmond,R.''' 1977. ''Dictionary of British and Irish Botanists and Horticulturists.'' Taylor and Francis Ltd., London ISBN 0 95066 089 0 </ref> <ref name="Evans 03"> '''Evans, F.''' 2003. Mrs Alfred Gatty (1809 - 1873), author of ''British Seaweeds'' ''The Phycologist'' No.65: 14 — 17</ref>
==Late 19th century==
Much work was done in this period by many workers and the many specimens became very valuable. Harvey's specimens, are to be found in at least several herbaria as well as those of other phycologists whose names are to be found in historic publications.
In the same period Friedrich Traugott Kützing (1807-1893) in [[Germany]] described more new genera than anyone either before or after (Chapman, 1968 p.13). <ref name="Chapman 69"> '''Chapman, V.J.''' 1968. ''The Algae.'' Mackmillan, New York </ref> His publications span the period 1841 to 1869 and added materially to knowledge of algae of cold waters of the Arctic seas. Some of his specimend are stored in the Ulster Museum Herbarium (BEL) catalogued: F1171; F10281 — F10318. In 1883 [[Frans Reinhold Kjellman]], Professor of Botany at [[Uppsala University]], published ''The Algae of the Arctic Sea''. He divided the "Arctic Sea" into different regions which surround the North Pole (Kjellman, 1883).<ref name="Kjellman 71">'''Kjellman, F.R.''' Reprint 1971. The Algae of the Arctic Sea.''K. Svenska VetenskAkad. Handl.'' '''20'''(5): 1 — 351 </ref> Further research work on the marine algae of the world included: Charles Lewis Anderson (1827 — 1910) who collaborated with William Gilson Farlow and with Professor Daniel Cady Eaton to produce on the first exsiccatae of North American Algae (Papenfuss, 1976).<ref name="Papenfuss"/> Edward Morell Holmes (1843 - 1930), was an expert on [[seaweeds]], [[mosses]], liverworts and [[lichens]], specimens were sent to him from all over the [[British Isles]], as well as from [[Norway]], [[Sweden]], [[Florida]], [[Tasmania]], [[France]], [[Cape of Good Hope]], [[Cylon]] and [[Australia]]. He also exchanged specimens (Furley, 1989).<ref name="Furley 89"> '''Furley, D.D.''' 1989 Notes on the correspondence of W.M.Holmes (1843 - 1930).''The Linnean'' '''5''': 23 — 30</ref> and some are in the herbarium of the Ulster Museum (BEL).
George Clifton (1823- 1913) an Australian phycologist is mentioned in [[Harvey]]'s Memoirs, as the Superintendent of the Water Police in Perth, West Australia sent algal specimens to Harvey (Blackler, H.1977).<ref name="Blackler 77"> '''Blackler, H.''' 1977. Harvey's Australian Algae in the Herbarium of Mrs Margaret Gatty in the Department of Botany of the University of St. Andrew's (STA), Scotland. ''Taxon'': '''26''': 495 — 496</ref> In these years there were many workers in this field: W.G. Farlow, mentioned above, who was appointed in 1879 Professor of Cryptogamic Botany at [[University of Harvard]] (U.S.A.) in 1879 and published, among other works, the ''Marine algae of New England and Adjacent Coasts.''; in 1876 John Erhard Areschoug, a Swedish Professor of Botany at Upsalla University, reported on some [[brown algae]] collected in [[California]] by Gustavus A. Eisen (Papenfuss. 1976).<ref name="Papenfuss"/> George W.Traill (1836 — 1897) was a clerk in the Standard Life Company in [[Edinburgh]] where he worked long hours, yet he was one of the greatest authorities on Scottish algae. Despite bad health he was an indefatigable collector. In 1892 he gave his collection to the Herbarium of the Edinburgh Botanic Gardens (Furley, 1989).<ref name ="Furley 89"/>
Mikael Heggelund Foslie ([[M.Foslie]]) (1855 — 1905) published 69 papers between 1887 — 1909. During this time he increased the number of species and forms (of corallines) from 175 to 650 (Irvine and Chamberlain, 1994). <ref name="Irvine and Chamberlain 94"/> After his death his collection of specimens was purchased by the Museum of the Royal Norwegian Society for Sciences and Letters (Thor ''et al'', 2005) <ref name="Thor, Johansen and Nilsen 05"> '''Thor, E., Johansen, S and Nielsen, L.S.''' 2005. The collection of botanical letters to Michael H.Foslie in the Gunnerus Library: a Catalogue ''Gurreria'' '''78''': 7 — 22</ref> and there is a small collection of his in the Ulster Museum Herbarium: (Collection No. 42) entitled: ''Algae Norvegicae'' (Ulster Museum Herbarium catalogue (BEL): F10319 — F10334). F.Heydrich also described 84 taxa and was a bitter foe of Foslie. This left a legacy of complicated and still unresolved problems.<ref name="Woelkerling 88"/>
It was in the 19th Century that the true nature of lichens [http://www.wikipendia.org/wiki/lichens], as organisms consisting of an alga and a fungus in specific association, was demonstrated by Schwendener in 1867. This removed a source of confusion in morphology and classification (Morton, 1981 p.432).<ref name="Morton 81"/> It was in this period (1859) that [[Charles Darwin]] (1809 — 1882) published his book on [[evolution]]:''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection,...''.
==20th century==
In 1895 Börgesen started his study of the Faeröes and published his work in 1902 (Börgesen, 1902).<ref name="Börgesen 02">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1902. The marine algae of the Faeröes ''Bot of the Faeröes.'' Part II. Copenhagen</ref> Later between 1920 and 1936 he published his research on the algae of the [[Canary Islands]]. <ref name="Börgesen 25"> '''Börgesen, F.''' 1925. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially from Teneriffe and Grand Cararia. I. Chlorophyceae. ''Biol. Meddr'' '''5''': 1 — 123 </ref><ref name="Börgesen 26"> '''Börgesen, F.''' 1926. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially from Teneriffe and Grand Canaria. II. Phaeophyceae. ''Biol. Meddr'' '''6''': 1 — 112</ref><ref name="Börgesen 27">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1927. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially from Teneriffe and Gran Canary. III, Rhodophyceae. Part I, Bangiales and Nemalionales. ''K. Danske Vidensk. Selsk. Skrifter, Biol. Meddr.'' '''6''': 1 — 97</ref><ref name="Börgesen 29">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1929. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially from Teneriffe and Gran Canaria. III. Rhodophyceae. 2, Cryptonemiales, Gigartinales and Rhodymeniales. ''Biol. Meddr'' '''8''':1 — 97</ref><ref name="Börgesen 30">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1930. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially Teneriffe and Gran Canaria. ''Biol. Meddr'' '''9''': 1 — 159</ref>
In 1935 and 1945 [[Felix Eugen Fritsch]] (1879 — 1954) published in two volumes his treatise: ''The Structure and Reproduction of the Algae''. These two volumes detail virtually all that was then known about the morphology and reproduction of the algae. However knowledge of algae has so greatly increased since then it would be impossible for these to be to bring to be brought up-to-date, nevertheless reference is often made to them. Other valuable works published in the 1950s include ''Cryptogamic Botany.'' written by Gilbert Morgan Smith (1885 — 1959), the algal volume (no.1) was published in 1955. In the following year (1956), ''Die Gattungen der Rhodophyceen.'' by Herald Johann Kylin (1879 — 1949) was published posthumously. Other phycologists who contributed massively to the knowledge of algae include: Elmer Yale Dawson (1918 — 1966) who published over 60 papers on the algae of the North American Pacific seas (Papenfuss, 1976). <ref name="Papenfuss"/>
==The development of public awareness==
The number of books published in the mid to late 1800s shows how interest in the natural world developed. Books on algae were written by: Isabella Gifford (1853) ''The Marine Botanist...'', some of her specimens are in the Ulster Museum; D. Landsborough (c.1779 — 1854) ''A Popular History of British Seaweeds,...'' third edition published in 1857; Louisa Lane Clarke (c.1812 - 1883) ''The Common Seaweeds of the British Coast and Channel Islands;...'' in 1865; S.O.Gray (1828 — 1902) ''British Sea-weeds:...'' published 1867 and W.H.Grattann ''British Marine Algae:...''published about 1874. These books were for the ''common'' people.
In 1902 Edward Arthur Lionel Batters (1860 — 1907) published "A catalogue of the British Marine algae." (Batters, 1902). <ref name="Batters 02">'''Batters, E.A.L.''' 1902. A catalogue of the British Marine Algae. ''J. Bot., Lond.'' '''40'''(Suppl.): 1 — 107</ref> In this he detailed records of algae found on the shores of the British Isles with the localities. This was the start of a new approach, the bringing together of records, detailed keys, checklists and mapping schemes.
The process accelerated in the 20th century. Lilly Newton (née Batten) (1893 — 1981) Professor in Botany at the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth and Professor Emeritus in 1931 wrote: ''A Handbook of the British Seaweeds.''<ref name="Newton 31">'''Newton, L.''' 1931. ''A Handbook oof the British Seaweeds.'' British Museum, London</ref> This was the first, and for quite a time, the only book for identification of seaweeds in the [[British Isles]] using a botanical key. In 1962 [[Eifion Jones]] published: ''A key to the genera of the British seaweeds''. <ref name="Jones 64">'''Jones, W.Eifion''' 1964. A Key to the Genera of the British Seaweeds. ''Field Studies,'' '''1''': 1 — 32 </ref> This small booklet provided a valuable source bridging the period before the valuable series ''Seaweeds of the British Isles'' was produced by the British Museum (Natural History) or The [[Natural History Museum]].
Research advanced so quickly that the need for an up-to-date checklist became apparent. Mary Parke (1902 — 1981), who was a founder member of the British Phycological Society, produced a preliminary checklist of British marine algae in 1953, corrections and additions of this were published in 1956, 1957 and 1959. In 1964 M.Parke and Peter Stanley Dixon (1929 — 1993) published a revised check-list, a second revision of this was produced in 1968 and a third revision in 1976. Distribution was added to the checklist in 1986 with G.R.South and I.Tittley's ''A Checklist and Distributional Index of the Benthic Marine Algae of the North Atlantic Ocean''. In 2003 ''A Check-list and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland'' was published by Gavin Hardy and Michael Guiry with a revised edition in 2006 . This shows how rapidly knowledge of algae, at least in the [[British Isles]], advanced. First efforts had been made by interested biologists and people capable of identifying the algae, this required books using the botanical names. Botanical keys to identify the plants then developed, followed by checklists. As more information was brought to light by interested workers, some volunteers, the checklists were improved and eventually a mapping scheme brought together all this information. The same pattern of knowledge developed with [[birds]], [[mammals]] and [[flowering plants]], though to a different time-scale and knowledge in other parts of the world has developed to this degree.
===Numbers and checklists===
As records were collected the need to draw all the information together advanced. Checklists and annotated checklists were produced and updated so the actual numbers of different species became more precise. At first this was quite local. Threlkeld, in 1726, produced the first attempt at an enumeration of Irish Algae and in 1802 William Tighe published his "Marine plants observed at the County of Wexford," it included 58 marine and 2 freshwater species. In 1804 Wade published ''Plantae Rariores in Hibernia Inventae,'' in which 51 species of marine and 4 species of freshwater algae were enumerated. In the north of Ireland [[John Templeton (Botanist)]] and [[William Thompson (naturalist)|William Thompson]] were at work publishing on the algae of Ireland. In 1836 Mackay published his ''Flora Hibernica'' including 296 species. Adams, in his synopsis of 1908, listed a total of marine species reaching 843.<ref name="Adams 08"> '''Adams,J.''' 1908. A synopsis of Irish algae, freshwater and marine. ''Prog. Roy. Irish. Acad.'' '''27B''': 11 - 60</ref>
In more localised lists Adams (in 1907) listed the species of County Antrim <ref name="Adams 07"> '''Adams, J.''' 1907. The Seaweeds of the Antrim Coast. ''Scient. Pap. Ulster Fish. Biol. Ass.,'' '''1''': 29 - 37</ref> noted that of the 747 species included in "Batter's List" <ref name="Batters 02">'''Batters, E.A.L.''' 1902. A catalogue of the British Marine Algae. ''J. Bot., Lond.'' '''40'''(Suppl.): 1 — 107</ref> he recorded 211 species from the Co. Antrim coast. In 1907 a list of marine aslgae from [[Lambay Island]] (County Dublin) was published by Batters. <ref name="Batters 07">'''Batters, A.L.''' 1907. A preliminary list of the marine algae. ''Ir. Nat.'' '''16''':107 - 110</ref> In 1960 A preliminary list of the marine algae of Galloway coast was published. <ref name="Burrows 60">'''Burrows, E.M.''' 1960. A preliminary list of the marine algae of the Galloway coast. ''Br phycol. Bull.'' '''2''': 23 - 25</ref>
At the international level there are well over 3,000 species of alga in Australia.<ref name="Huisman 00"/>
===Identification===
As the study and identification of the different species, became more extensive it became clear that identification was not at all easy. Harvey's 1846 - 51 ''Phycologia Britannica.'' along with his other publications makes no effort to provide "keys" to help in the identification. In 1931 Newton's Handbook <ref name="Newton 31"/>which gave the first key to assist in the identification of algae of the British Isles, in the same year Knight and Park gave a key in their "Manx Algae." <ref name="Knight and Park 31">'''Knight,M. and Park, M.W.''' 1931. Manx algae. An algal survey of the south end of the Isle of Man, ''Proc. Trans. L'pool biol. Soc.'' '''45'''(Appendix II): 1 155</ref> [[Eifion Jones]] in 1962, wrote a key to the genera of British seaweeds.<ref name="Eifion 64">'''Jones,W.E.''' 1964. A Key to the Genera of the British Seaweeds. ''Field Studies'' '''1''': 1 — 32</ref> Others soon followed: Dickinson wrote one entitled ''British Seaweeds.''<ref name="Dickinson 63">'''Dickinson, C.I.''' 1963 ''British Seaweeds.''The Kew Series Eyre & Spottiswood </ref> and Adey and Adey (1973) gave keys to the identification of the Corallinaceae of the British Isles.<ref name="Adey and Adey 73">'''Adey, W.H. and Adey, P.J.''' 1973. Studies on the Biosystematics and ecology of the epilithic crustose Corallinaceae of the British Isles. ''Br.phycol.J.'' '''8''': 343 - 407</ref> Abott and Hollenberg, in 1976, published keys to the identification of algae of [[California]]. <ref name="Abbott and Hollenberg 76"> '''Abbott, I.A. and Hollenberg, G.J.''' 1976. ''Marine Algae of California.'' Stanford University Press, California. ISBN 0-8047-0867-3</ref>
==The evolution of classification in the algae==
Linnaeus's "sexual system" (Linnaeus, 1754) <ref name="Linnaeus 54">'''Linnaeus, C.''' 1754. Genera plantarum. Holmiae.</ref> in which he grouped plants according to the number of stamens and carepels in the flowers, although wholly artificial was advantageous in that a newly discovered plant could be fitted in amongst those already known. He divided the plant kingdom into 25 classes, one of which was the Cryptogamia - plants with "concealed reproductive organs" (see above) (Smith, 1955).<ref name="Smith 55"/> Linnaeus accepted 14 genera of algae of which only four, Conferva, ''[[Ulva]],'' ''[[Fucus]]'' and ''[[Chara]],'' contained organisms now regarded as algae (Dixon, 1973 p.231).<ref name="Dixon 73">'''Dixon, P.S.''' 1973, ''Biology of the [[Rhodophyta]].'' Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh. ISBN 0 05 002485 X</ref> As a consequence of the great increase in the number of species the artificiality of the Linnaean system was appreciated so that during the 18th Century and early 19th Century considerable numbers of new genera were described. J.V.F.Lamouroux in 1813 <ref name="Lamouroux 13"> '''Lamouroux,J.V.F.''' 1813. Essai sur les genres de la famille de Thalassiophytes, non articulées. ''Annls Mus. natn. Hit. nat., Paris,'' '''20''': 115 — 139; 267 — 294</ref> was the first to separate the groups on the basis of colour, however this was not taken up by other botanists and it was Harvey, who in 1836, divided the algae into four major devisions solely on the basis of their pigmentation: Rhodospermae (red algae), Melanospermae (brown algae), Chlorospermae (green algae) and Diatomaceae (Dixon,1973 p.232).<ref name="Dixon 73"/>
In 1883 and 1897 Schmitz separated the Rhodophyceae into two main groups. The first contained the Bangiales and the second the Nemoniales, Cryptonemiales, Gigartinales and Rhodymeniales (Newton, 1931).<ref name="Newton 31"/> The Rhodophyta are now arranged in the Orders: Porphyridiales, Goniotrichales, Erythropeltidales, Bangiales, Acrochaetiales, Colaconematales, Palmariales, Ahnfeltiales, Nemaliales, Gelidiales, Gracilariales, Bonnemaisoniales, Cryptonemiales, Hildenbrandiales, Corallinales, Gigartinales, Plocamiales, Rhodymeniales and Ceramiales. The Chlorophyta are arranged in the Orders: Chlorococcales, Microsporales, Chaetophorales, Phaeophilales, Ulvales, Prasiolales, Acrosiphoniales, Cladiphorales, Bryopsidales, Chlorocystidales, Klebsormidiales and Ulotrichales. The Heterokontophyta: Sphacelariales, Dictyotales, Ectocarpales, Ralfsiales, Utleriales, Sporochniales, Tilopteridales, Desmarestiales, Laminariales and the Fucales (Hardy and Guiry, 2006). <ref name="Hardy and Guiry 03">'''Hardy, F.G. and Guiry, M.D.''' 2006. ''A Check-list and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland'' (Hardy and Guiry, 2006). British Phycological Society, London. ISBN 3-906166-35-X</ref>
Recently (1990s) The Kingdom: [[Protoctista]] has been recommended <ref name="Margulis et al 90"> '''Margulis, L., Corliss. John, Melkonian, M. and Chapman, D.J.''' 1990. ''Handbook of Protoctista.'' Jones and Bartlett, Boston. ISBN 0-86720-052-9</ref> however this has not been accepted by many authors.
==Obituaries, memoria and appreciations of distinguished Phycologists:-==
* [[Elsie M. Burrows]] (Dr.) (1913 — 1986) Norton, T.A. 1987. Obituary: ''Br.phycol.J.'' '''22''': 317 — 319.
* Blackler, Margaret Constance Helen (1902 — 1981) Irvine, D.E.G. and Russell, G. 1982. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''17''': 343 — 346.
* Elsie Conway (née) Phillips) (1902 — 1992) Visited University of British Columbia in 1969 — 1970 and researched there in 1972 — 1974. She was president of the British Phycological Society 1965 — 1967. Retired in 1969. Boney, A.D. 1993 An appreciation. ''The Phycologist'' '''35''': 3.
* de Váléra, Máirin (1912 — 1984). Guiry, M.D. and Dixon, P.S. 1985. Obituary: ''Br. Phycol. J.'' '''20''': 81 — 84.
* Dixon, Peter Stanley (1929 — 1993). Murray, S.N. and Scott, J.L. 1995. In Memoriam Peter Stanley Dixon (1929 - 1993) ''Phycologia'' '''34''': 538 — 543.
* [[Eifion Jones]], Willian (1925 — 2004). Fogg, T. 2004. 2004 In memoriam.; ''The Phycologist.'' '''67''': 19.
* Irvine, David Edward Guthrie (1924 — 1995). Fletcher, R.L. 1996: Obituary : ''The Phycologist'' '''4''': 3 — 7.
* Manton, Irene. (1904 — 1988). Leedale, G. 1989. Obituary: ''Br phycol. J.'' '''24''' :103 — 109.
* Newton, Lilly (née Batten) (1893 — 1981). Jones, G. 1982. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''17''': 1 — 4.
* Papenfuss, George Frederik (1903 — 1981). Abbott, I.A. 1982. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''17''': 347 — 349.
* Parke, Mary (1908 — 1989). Green, J.C. 1990. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''25''': 211 — 216.
* Taylor, William Randolph. (1895 — 1990). Hillis, L. 1992. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''27''': 1 — 2.
===Miscellaneous Notes===
* Máirin de Valéra (1912 — 1984). Professor Emerita of Botany at University College, Galway.
Publications:-
De Valéra, M. 1958. ''A topographical guide to the seaweed of Co. Galway Bay with some brief notes on other districts on the west coast coast of Ireland.'' Institute for Industrial Standards and Rersearch Dublin, Dublin.
De Valéra, M. 1959. The Third International Seaweed Symposium at University College, Galway. 1958, ''Irish Naturalists' Journal'' '''13''': 18 - 19.
De Valéra, M. 1960. Interesting seaweeds from the shores of the Burren. ''Irish Naturalists' Journal.'' '''13''': 168.
De Valéra, M. * Cooke, P.J. 1979. Seaweed in Burren grykes. ''Irish Naturalists' Journal.'' '''19''': 435 - 436.
De Valéra, M., Pybus, C., Casley, B. & Webster, A. 1979. 1979. Littoral and benthic investigations on the west coast of Ireland.X. Marine algae of the northern shores of the Burren, C. Clare. ''Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.'' '''79B''': 259 - 269.
* Edward Batters (1860 — 1907). B.A.; FLS 1883
* Elmer Yale Dawson (1918 — 1966).
* Kathleen M. Drew Baker (...1925 — 1927...). University of Manchester. President of the British Phycological Society 1953.
* Margaret Constance Helen Blackler (1902 — 1981). Assistant Keeper of Botany, Liverpool Museum (1933 — 1945). In 1947 joined staff University St Andrews.
* Peter Stanley Dixon (1929 — 1993). Professor Emeritus of Biology at University of California.
* William Dwyn Isaac (1905 — 1995).
* Harald Kylin (...1906 — 1949...). Author: ''Die Gattengen der Rhodophyceen.'' 1956 CWK Gleerups Förlag,Lund. Specimens in [[Ulster Museum]]....
* George Russell (...1983 — 1984...). President of British Phycological Society 1983 - 1984.
===References Noted===
<references/>
==Further Reading==
'''Darwin, C. R.''' 1859. ''On the Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection,...'' London: John Murray, London.
'''Farlow, W.G.''' 1881. The marine algae of New England. ''Report of U.S. Fish Commission'' ''1879'' :Appendix A-1, 1 — 210.
'''Fritsch, F.E.''' 1935. ''The Structure and Reproduction of the Algae''. Vol. '''1'''. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
'''Fritsch, F.E.''' 1945. ''The Structure and Reproduction of the Algae''. Vol. '''2'''. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
'''Gatty, M.''' 1863. ''British Seaweeds.'' London.
'''Gifford, I.''' 1853. ''The Marine Botanist;...'' Longman and Co., London.
'''Grattan, W.H.''' (1874?) ''British Marine Algae:'' London.
'''Gray, S.O.''' 1867. ''British Sea-weeds:...'' London.
'''Hardy, F.G. and Guiry, M.D.''' 2003. ''A Checklist and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland.'' British Phycological, London.
'''Hardy, F.G. and Guiry, M.D.''' 2006. ''A Checklist and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland - Revised Edition.'' British Phycological, London. ISBN 3-906166-35-X
'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1833. Algae, in W.J.Hooker and G.A.W.Arnott, ''The Botany of Captain Beechey's Voyage''... London. pp. 163 - 165.
'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1846 - 1851. ''Phycologia Britannica,...'' London.
'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1847 - 1849. ''Nereis Australis Or Algae Of the Southern Ocean''. Reeve, London.
'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1852- 1858. Pt 1 - 111 ... Nereis boreali-americana... ''Smithsonian Contr. to Knoweledge.''
'''Hooker, W.J.''' 1833. Cryptomaia Algae [pp.264 - 322] in. Hooker, W.J. ''The English Flora of Sir James Edward Smith.'' Class xxiv, Cryptogamia. Vol V, Part 1.
'''Landsborough, D.''' 1857. ''A Popular History of British Seaweeds,...'' London: Reeve, Benham & Reeve.
'''Parke, M.''' 1953. A preliminary check-list of British marine algae. ''J.Mar. Biol. Assoc. U.K.'' '''32''': 497 - 520.
'''Parke, M. and Dixon, P.S.''' 1964. A revised check-list of British marine algae. ''J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K.'' '''44''': 499 - 542.
'''Parke, M. and Dixon, P.S.''' 1968. Check-list of British marine algae - second revision. ''J. Mar. Biol. Ass. U.K.'' '''48''': 783- 832.
'''Parke, M. and Dixon, P.S.''' 1976. Check-list of British marine algae - third revision. ''J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U.K.'' '''56''': 527 - 594.
'''Ross, H.C.G. and Nash, R.''' 1985. The development of natural history in early nineteenth century Ireland. ''From Linnaeus to Darwin: commentaries on the history of biology and geology.'' Society of Natural History, London. 1985.
'''South, G.R. and Tittley, I.''' 1986. ''A Checklist and Distributional Index of the Benthic Marine Algae of the North Atlantic Ocean.'' St Andrews and London.
==Internal links==
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_botanists - List of Botanists
==External links==
*http://users.ugent.be/phycology/harvey/ W.H.H. Phycologia Australica
*http://www.botanicgardens.ie/ National Botanic Gardens of Ireland.
*http://www2.nrm.se/fbo/hist/linnaeus/linnaeus.html.en Carl Linnaeus Botanical History
*http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/linnaeus.html Carl Linnaeus
*http://www.algaebase.org/ listing the world's algae
*http://www.seaweed.ie/ Seaweed Site
*http://www.mba.ac.uk/ Marine Biological Assoc. of UK
*http://www.brphycsoc.org/ British Phycological Society
*http://www.intphycsoc.org/ International Phycological Society
*http://www.schweizerbart.de/j/algological-studies/ Algological Studies is an international journal of phycological
*http://www.psaalgae.org/ Phycological Society of America
*http://www.phycology.net/ The Phycology.Net
==See also==
*[[Algae]]
*[[Botany]]
{{History of biology}}
[[Category:History of biology|Phycology, history of]] List of botanists
[[Category:Algae]]
'''[[Phycology]]''' is the study of marine [[algae]] (e.g. [[seaweeds]]) and [[history]] is the study of the past [[human]] activities. Man's interest in plants as food goes back into the origins of the species (''[[Homo sapiens]]'') and knowledge of algae can be traced back more than two thousand years. However only in the last three hundred years has that knowledge developed into a rapidly developing [[science]].
==Early days==
[[Image:Arabic_herbal_medicine_guidebook.jpeg|thumb|250px|'''[[Dioscorides]]’ De [[Materia Medica]]''', c. 1334 copy in [[Arabic]], describes medicinal features of [[cumin]] and [[dill]].]]
The study of [[botany]] goes back into pre-history as [[plants]] were the food of people from the beginning of time. The first attempts at plant cultivation are believed to have been made shortly before 10,000 BC in Western [[Asia]] (Morton, 1981)<ref name="Morton 81">'''Morton, A.G.''' 1981 ''History of Botanical Science.'' Academic Press Inc. (London) Ltd. ISBN: 0-12-508380-7</ref> and the first references to algae are to be found in early [[Chinese literature]]. Records as far back as 3,000 BC indicate that algae were used by the emperor of [[China]] as food. (Huisman, 2000 p.13).<ref name="Huisman 00">'''Huisman, J.M.''' 2000. ''Marine Plants of Australia.'' University of Western Australia Press, Australia. ISBN 1 876268 33 6</ref> The use of ''[[Porphyra]]'' in China dates back to at least A.D. 533 — 44 (Mumfard and Miura, 1988), <ref name ="Mumford and Miura, 1988">'''Mumford, T.F. and Miura, A.''' 1988. 4. p.87 — 117. ''Porphyra'' as food: cultivation and economics. in Lembi, C.A. and Waaland, J.R. 1988. ''Algae and Human Affairs.'' Cambridge University Press, Cambridge ISBN 0-521-32115-8</ref> there are also references in Roman and Greek literature. The Greek word for algae was "Phycos" whilst in [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] times the name became ''[[Fucus]]''. There are early references to the use of algae for [[manure]]. The first [[coralline algae]] to be recognized as living organisms were probably ''Corallina'', by [[Pliny the Elder]] in the first century AD (Irvine and Chamberlain, 1994 p.11).<ref>'''Irvine, L.M. and Chamberlain, Y.M.''' 1994. ''Seaweeds of the British Isles. Volume 1, Rhodophyta Part 2B Corallinales, Hildenbrandiales''. Natural History Museum, London. ISBN 0 11 3100167</ref>
The classification of plants suffered many changes since [[Theophrastus]] (372 - 287 B.C.) and [[Aristotle]] (384 - 322 B.C.) grouped them as "[[trees]]", "[[shrubs]]" and "[[herbs]]" (Smith, 1955 p.1).<ref name="Smith 55"> '''Smith, G.M. ''' 1955. ''Cryptogamic Botany. Volume 1. Algae and Fungi.'' McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York.,</ref>
Little is known of botany during the [[Middle Ages]] - it was the dark ages of botany.<ref name="Morton 81"/>
The development of the study of phycology runs in a pattern comparable with, and parallel to, other biological fields but at a different rate. After the invention of the [[printing-press]] in the 15th century (with the publication of the first printed book: Gutenberg's ''Bible'' of 1488) <ref name="Hawksworth, and Seaward 77">'''Hawksworth, D.L and Seaward, M.R.D.''' 1977. ''Lichenology in the British Isles 1568 - 1975'' The Richmond Publishing Co. Ltd. ISBN 0 85546 200 0</ref> education enabled people to read and knowledge to spread. Interest in algae then increased speedily.
===The exploration of the world and the advance of knowledge===
Written accounts of the algae of [[South Africa]] were made by the Portuguese explorers of the 15th and 16th centuries, however it is not clear to which species reference was being made (Huisman, 2000 p.7).<ref name="Huisman 00">'''Huisman, J.M.''' 2000. ''Marine Plants of Australia.'' University of Western Australia Press; Australia Biological Resources Study. ISBN 1 876268 33 6</ref>
==17th Century==
In the 17th Century there was a great awakening of scientific interest all over [[Europe]], and after the invention of the printing-press books on botany were published. Among them was the work of [[John Ray]][http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/ray.html] who wrote in 1660: ''Catalogus Plantarum circa Cantabrigiam.'', this initiated a new era in the study of Botany (Smith, 1975 p.4).<ref name="Smith 75">'''Smith, A.L.''' 1975. ''Lichens''. The Richmond Publishing Co. Ltd. England </ref> Ray "influenced both the theory and the practice of botany more decisively than any other single person in the latter half of the seventeenth century" (Morton, 1981).<ref name="Morton 81"/>
However no real progress was made in the scientific study of algae until the invention of the [[microscope]] - in about 1600. It was [[Anton van Leeuwenhoek]] (1632 — 1723) who discovered [[bacteria]] and saw the cell structure of plants. His unsystematic glimpses of plant structure, reported to the [[Royal Society]] between 1678 and his death in 1723, produced no significant advances (Morton, 1981 p.180).<ref name="Morton 81"/>
As adventurers explored the world more species of all [[animals]] and plants were discovered, this demanded efforts to bring order out of this quickly accumulating knowledge.
'''Australia'''
The first [[Australia]]n marine plant recorded in print was collected from [[Shark Bay]] on the Western Australian coast by William Dampier who described many new species of Australian wildlife in the 17th century (Huisman, 2000 p.7).<ref name="Huisman 00">'''Huisman, J.M.''' 2000. ''Marine Plants of Australia.'' University of Western Australia Press; Australia Biological Resources Study ISBN 1 876268 33 6</ref>
==18th Century==
Before [[Carl von Linné]] (1707 — 1778) animals and plants, had names, but it took him to arrange the names and group the [[plants]] of this [[Earth]] in some sort of order. [[Carolus Linnaeus]] (Carl von Linné) [http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/linnaeus.html] was a Swedish botanist, the son of a pastor of the Lurtheran church, a physician and [[zoologist]]. He laid the foundations of modern biological [[systematics]] and [[Scientific classification|nomenclature]] in his ''Species Plantarum'' (1753).<ref name=<"Linnaeus 53"> '''Linnaeus, C.''' 1753 ''Species plantarum...,'' 2 vols. Salvius, Stackholm.</ref> He adopted and popularized a [[Binomial nomenclature|binomial]] (or binary) system of designation (Morton, 1981)<ref name="Morton 81"/> using one name as the [[genus]] and a second name as the [[species]] name both in Latin or ''Latinised''. This specific name he referred to as a trivial name ''nomen triviale'' consisting of a single word, normally a Latin adjective, but any single word would suffice, to identify a particular species, but not intended to describe it. He developed a coherent system for naming organisms and divided the plant kingdom into 25 classes (according to Smith p.1 and p.24 according to Dixon, 1973) (Smith, 1955 p.1).<ref name="Smith 55">'''Smith,G.M.''' 1955. ''Cryptogamic Botany.'' Vol. 1. McGraw-Hill, New York </ref> <ref name="Dixon, 73">'''Dixon, P.S.''' 1973. ''Biology of the Rhodophyta.'' Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh. ISBN 0 05 002485X</ref> one of which, the ''Cryptogamia'', included all plants with ''concealed'' reproductive organs. He divided the Cryptogamia into four orders: [[Filices]], Musci ([[mosses]]), [[Algae]] - which included [[lichens]] and [[liverworts]] and [[fungi]]. (Smith, 1955 p.1)<ref name="Smith 55"/> [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/linnean_taxonomy]
Examination for the reproductive structures had already started. In 1711, R.A.F de [[Réaumur]] gave an account of ''[[Fucus]]'' in which noted the two types of external openings in the thallus: the non-sexual cryptostromata (sterile surface cavities) and the conceptacles (fertile cavities, immersed but with a surface opening) containing the sexual organs, which he thought were female flowers. With a lens he was able to see the oogonoa (the female sex organs) and the antheridia (the male sex organs) within the conceptacles, but he interpreted these as seeds (Morton, 1981 p.245).<ref name="Morton 81"/> [[Johann Hedwig]] (1730 — 1799) provided further evidence of the sexual process in algae, and figured conjugation in ''[[Spirogyra]]'' Hedwig in 1797. He also illustrated ''Chara'' (''[[Charales]]'') and identified the antheridia and oogonia as male and female sexual organs (Morton, 1981 p.323 & 357).<ref name="Morton 81"/>
During the 18th Century there was a stormy controversy as to whether coralline algae were plants or animals. Up to the mid — 1700s coralline algae (and coral animals) were generally treated as plants. By 1768 many, but by no means all authorities, considered them animal. Five years later, Harvey concluded that they were certainly of vegetable material he noted: "The question of the vegetable nature of Corallines, among which the ''Melobesia'' take rank, may now be considered as finally set at rest, by the researches of Kützing, Phillipi and Decaisne." (Harvey,1847, pl. 73).<ref name="Harvey 47">'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1847. ''Phycologia Britannica.'' Vol. 1, Fasc.13 (plates 73 — 78) Reeve & Benham, London, London.</ref><ref name="Woelkerling 88">'''Woelkerling, Wm. J.''' 1988 ''The Coralline Red Algae:...'' British Museum (Natural History), Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-854249-6</ref>
The first scientific species description of a '''[[South African]]''' seaweed accepted for most nomenclatural purposes is that of ''Ecklonia maxima'', published in 1757 as ''Fucus maximus'' (Stegenga ''et al'', 1997). <ref name="Stegenga 97"> '''Stegenga, H., Bolton, J.J. and Anderson, R.J.''' 1997. ''Seaweeds of the South African West Coast.'' Bolus Herbarium, University of Cape Town. ISBN 0-7992-1793-X</ref>
Knowledge of '''[[North America]]n''' [[Pacific]] algae begins with the 1791 — 95 expedition of Captain [[George Vancouver]] (Papenfuss,1976 p.21).<ref name="Papenfuss">'''Papenfuss, G.F.''' pp.21 — 46 Landmarks in Pacific North American Marine Phycology in Abbott, I.A. and Hollenberg, G.J. 1976. ''Marine Algae of California.'' Stanford University Press, California.ISBN 0-8047-0867-3</ref>
[[Archibald Menzies]] (1754 — 1842) was the appointed botanist on the expedition led by Captain George Vancouver in the ships ''Discovery'' and ''Chatham'' of 1791 — 1795 to the [[Pacific]] coast of [[North America]] and south-western Australia. The algae collected by Menzies were passed to Dawson Turner (1775 — 1858) who described and illustrated them in a four-volumed work published in 1808 — 1819. However Turner only referred to the [[taxa]] referable to ''[[Fucus]]''; either Menzies collected very few or he gave only a few to Turner. Three of these species described by Turner later became the types of new [[genera]] (Papenfuss, 1976)<ref name="Papenfuss"/> and (Huisman, 2000) <ref name="Huisman 00"/> Turner also received plants from [[Robert Brown]] (1773 — 1858) the botanist who accompanied Captain Matthew Flinders on the ''Investigator'' (1801 - 1805). This collection also included many plants from Australia (Huisman, 2000). <ref name="Huisman 00"/>
The real awakening of interest in American algae resulted from a visit by [[William Henry Harvey]] in 1849 — 1850 when he visited areas from [[Florida]] to [[Nova Scotia]] and produced three volumes of ''Nereis Boreali-Americana.'' These gave an incentive to others to study algae (Taylor, 1972 p.21).<ref name=''Taylor 72''>'''Taylor,W.R.''' 1972 ''Marine Algae of the Northeastern Coast of North America.'' Ann Arbor, Mich ISBN 0-472-04904-6</ref>
The first collector of marine algae in [[Greenland]] waters seems to have been J.M.Vahl who lived in Greenland from 1828 to 1836. Vahl's East Greenland species were not recorded until 1893 when Rosenvinge included them in his work of 1893 together with the species collected by Sylow (Lund, 1959). <ref name="Lund 59"> '''Lund,S.''' 1959. The Marine Algae of East Greenland I. Taxonomic part. ''Meddr Gronland'' '''156''': 1 — 248 </ref> F.R.Kjellman records only 12 species from East Greenland 4 of which are doubtful, these records are based on Zeller's list (Lund, 1959).<ref name="Lund 59"/>
==Early 19th Century==
[[Carl Adolph Agardh]] was one of the most prominent algologists of all time, he was born in Sweden on 23 January 1785 and died on 28th January 1859. He was Professor of Botany at the [[University of Lund]] and later [[Bishop]] of Karlstad Diocese (Papenfuss, 1976).<ref name="Papenfuss"/> Many species still show his name as the authority of the scientific name. He traveled widely in [[Europe]] visiting [[Germany]], [[Poland]], [[Denmark]], the [[Netherlands]], [[Belgium]], [[France]] and [[Italy]] and was the first to emphasize the importance of the reproductive characters of algae and use them to distinguish the different genera and families. His son, [[Jacob Georg Agardh]] (1813 — 1901), who became Professor of Botany at [[Lund]] in 1839, made a study of the life-histories of algae, described many new genera and species. It was to him that many workers sent specimens for determination and as donations. Because of this the herbarium at Lund is the most important algal [[herbaria]] in the world (Papenfuss, 1976). <ref name="Papenfuss"/>
The first records of algae from the Faeröes were made by Jorgen Landt in his book of 1800 where he mentions about 30 species. Following this Hans Christian Lyngbye visited the Faeröes in 1817 and published his work in 1819. In this he described several new genera and species, some 100 new species were listed. E.Rostrup who visited the Faeöes in 1867 listed ten new species and a total not far from 100. In 1895 Herman G. Simmons mentioned 125 species, in that year F. Börgesen (1866 - 1956) started work and in 1902 published his work (Börgesen, 1902 p.399 — 343).<ref name="Börgesen,02">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1902. The marine algae of the Faeröes. ''Bot. of the Faeröes.'' Part II. Copenhagen</ref>
Jean Vincent Félix Lamouroux (1779 — 1825) was the first, in 1813, to separate the algae into groups on the basis of colour (Dixon and Irvine, 1977 p.59).<ref name="Dixon and Irvine 77">'''Dixon, P.S. and Irvine, L.M.''' 1977. ''Seaweeds of the British Isles. Vol.1. Rhodophyta. Part 1.'' British Museum [Natural History], London. ISBN 0 565 007815</ref> At this time all coralline algae were considered [[animals]], it was R. Philippi who in 1837 published his paper in which he finally recognized that coralline algae were not animals and he proposed the generic names ''Lithophyllum'' and ''Lithothamnion'' (Irvine and Chamberlain, 1994 p.11).<ref name="Irvine and Chamberlain 94">'''Irvine, L.M. and Chamberlain, Y.M.''' 1994. ''Seaweeds of the British Isles Vol.1. Part 2B.'' Natural History Museum, London. ISBN 0 11 3100167</ref>
Freshwater algae are commonly treated separately from marine algae and may be considered not correctly placed in phycology. [[Lewis Weston Dillwyn]] (1778 — 1855) "British Confervae" (1809) was one of the earliest attempts to bring together all that was then known on the British Freshwater algae .<ref name="West and Fritsch 27"> '''West, G.S. and Fritsch, F.E.''' 1927. ''A Treastise on the British Freshwater Algae.'' Cambridge University Press, Cambridge</ref>
Specimens of Anne E. Ball (1808 - 1872) have been found in both the [[Herbarium]] of the [[Irish National Botanic Gardens]], Dublin [http://www.botanicgardens.ie/herb/herb.htm] and the [[Ulster Museum]] (BEL). A.E.Ball was an Irish algologist who corresponded with W.H. Harvey and whose records appear in his ''Phycologia Britannica.'' The specimens in Dublin do not contain any unusual or rare items. However, they are well documented.<ref name="Parkes and Scannell 70">'''Parkes, H.M. and Scannell, M.J.P.''' 1970. Anne E. Ball, two volumes of algae in Herbarium. National Botanic Gardens, Dublin. ''Ir Nat. J.'' '''16''': 349</ref>
==W.H. Harvey==
[[Willian Henry Harvey]] (1811 — 1866) was Keeper of the [[Herbarium]] and Professor in [[Botany]] at [[Trinity College, Dublin]], and was one of the most distinguished algologists of his time (Papenfuss, 1976 p.26). <ref name="Papenfuss"/> Apart from [[Ireland]] he visited [[South Africa]], the Atlantic seaboard of [[North America|America]] as far south as the [[Florida Keys]] on the east coast of [[North America]] and [[Australia]] (1854 — 1856). Between 1853 to 1856 he visited [[Ceylon]], [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]] and various parts of the South Pacific (Huisman, 2000 & Papenfuss, 1976).<ref name="Huisman 00"/> <ref name="Papenfuss"/> His collection in Australia resulted in one of the most extensive collections of marine plants and it inspired others (Huisman, 2000).<ref name="Huisman 00"/> He published: ''Nereis Australis Or Algae of the Southern Ocean'' in 1847 - 1849 and in 1846 — 51 his ''Phycologia Britannica'' appeared. His ''Nereis Boreali-Americana'' was published in three parts (1852 — 1858) this was the first, and still is (1976)is the only marine algal flora of North America as it includes taxa from the [[Pacific]] coast (Papenfuss, 1976 p.27). <ref name="Papenfuss"/> His five-volume ''[[Phycologia Australica]]'' was published in 1858 to 1863. These volumes remain to this day a most important reference to Australian algae (Huisman, 2000). <ref name="Huisman 00"/> His primary herbarium is in Trinity College, Dublin (TCD). However large collections of Harvey material are to be found in the [[Ulster Museum]] (BEL) (Morton, 1977 & Morton, 1981)<ref name="Morton 77">'''Morton, O.''' 1977. A note on W.H.Harvey's algae in the Ulster Museum. ''Ir.Nat.J.'' '''19''':26</ref><ref name="Morton, O. 81">'''Morton, O.''' 1981. American algae collected by W.H.Harvey and others, in the Ulster Museum Herbarium. ''Taxon'': '''30''':867 — 868</ref>; [[University of St Andrews]] (STA) and National Herbarium of Victoria (MEL), Melbourne, Australia (May, 1977). <ref name="May 77">'''May, V.''' 1977 Harvey's Australian Algae at the National Herbarium of New South Wales (NSW), Sydney, Australia. ''Taxon'': '''26''': 496</ref> Many of the collectors of this period sent, and exchanged, specimens freely one to another, as a result Harvey's books show a remarkable knowledge of the distribution of algae elsewhere in the world. His ''Phycologia Britannica'' lists species recorded and collected from various parts of the [[British Isles]]. For example he notes [[William Thompson (naturalist)|William Thompson]] (1805 — 1852), W. McCalla (c.1814 — 1849), John Templeton (1766 — 1825) and D. Landsborough (1779 — 1854) who collected, as he did, from distinct sites in [[Ireland]]. The collections of these botanists, and many others, are represented separately by collections in the [[Ulster Museum]] (BEL).
Sir [[William Jackson Hooker]] (1785 — 1865) was a life-long friend of Harvey (Papenfuss, 1976 p.26), he was appointed Professor of Botany at [[Glasgow University]] in 1820 and became Director in [[Kew]] 1841 — 1865. Hooker recognized the talent in Harvey and lent him books, encouraged and invited him to write the section on algae in his ''British Flora.'' as well as the section on algae for ''The Botany of Captain Beechey's Voyage'' (Papenfuss, 1976).<ref name="Papenfuss"/> Margaret Gatty (1809 — 1873) (née Margaret Scott) (author of ''British Seaweeds'', 1863), and others, corresponded with William Henry Harvey (Desmond, 1977 and Evans, 2003). <ref name="Desmond 77"> '''Desmond,R.''' 1977. ''Dictionary of British and Irish Botanists and Horticulturists.'' Taylor and Francis Ltd., London ISBN 0 95066 089 0 </ref> <ref name="Evans 03"> '''Evans, F.''' 2003. Mrs Alfred Gatty (1809 - 1873), author of ''British Seaweeds'' ''The Phycologist'' No.65: 14 — 17</ref>
==Late 19th century==
Much work was done in this period by many workers and the many specimens became very valuable. Harvey's specimens, are to be found in at least several herbaria as well as those of other phycologists whose names are to be found in historic publications.
In the same period Friedrich Traugott Kützing (1807-1893) in [[Germany]] described more new genera than anyone either before or after (Chapman, 1968 p.13). <ref name="Chapman 69"> '''Chapman, V.J.''' 1968. ''The Algae.'' Mackmillan, New York </ref> His publications span the period 1841 to 1869 and added materially to knowledge of algae of cold waters of the Arctic seas. Some of his specimend are stored in the Ulster Museum Herbarium (BEL) catalogued: F1171; F10281 — F10318. In 1883 [[Frans Reinhold Kjellman]], Professor of Botany at [[Uppsala University]], published ''The Algae of the Arctic Sea''. He divided the "Arctic Sea" into different regions which surround the North Pole (Kjellman, 1883).<ref name="Kjellman 71">'''Kjellman, F.R.''' Reprint 1971. The Algae of the Arctic Sea.''K. Svenska VetenskAkad. Handl.'' '''20'''(5): 1 — 351 </ref> Further research work on the marine algae of the world included: Charles Lewis Anderson (1827 — 1910) who collaborated with William Gilson Farlow and with Professor Daniel Cady Eaton to produce on the first exsiccatae of North American Algae (Papenfuss, 1976).<ref name="Papenfuss"/> Edward Morell Holmes (1843 - 1930), was an expert on [[seaweeds]], [[mosses]], liverworts and [[lichens]], specimens were sent to him from all over the [[British Isles]], as well as from [[Norway]], [[Sweden]], [[Florida]], [[Tasmania]], [[France]], [[Cape of Good Hope]], [[Cylon]] and [[Australia]]. He also exchanged specimens (Furley, 1989).<ref name="Furley 89"> '''Furley, D.D.''' 1989 Notes on the correspondence of W.M.Holmes (1843 - 1930).''The Linnean'' '''5''': 23 — 30</ref> and some are in the herbarium of the Ulster Museum (BEL).
George Clifton (1823- 1913) an Australian phycologist is mentioned in [[Harvey]]'s Memoirs, as the Superintendent of the Water Police in Perth, West Australia sent algal specimens to Harvey (Blackler, H.1977).<ref name="Blackler 77"> '''Blackler, H.''' 1977. Harvey's Australian Algae in the Herbarium of Mrs Margaret Gatty in the Department of Botany of the University of St. Andrew's (STA), Scotland. ''Taxon'': '''26''': 495 — 496</ref> In these years there were many workers in this field: W.G. Farlow, mentioned above, who was appointed in 1879 Professor of Cryptogamic Botany at [[University of Harvard]] (U.S.A.) in 1879 and published, among other works, the ''Marine algae of New England and Adjacent Coasts.''; in 1876 John Erhard Areschoug, a Swedish Professor of Botany at Upsalla University, reported on some [[brown algae]] collected in [[California]] by Gustavus A. Eisen (Papenfuss. 1976).<ref name="Papenfuss"/> George W.Traill (1836 — 1897) was a clerk in the Standard Life Company in [[Edinburgh]] where he worked long hours, yet he was one of the greatest authorities on Scottish algae. Despite bad health he was an indefatigable collector. In 1892 he gave his collection to the Herbarium of the Edinburgh Botanic Gardens (Furley, 1989).<ref name ="Furley 89"/>
Mikael Heggelund Foslie ([[M.Foslie]]) (1855 — 1905) published 69 papers between 1887 — 1909. During this time he increased the number of species and forms (of corallines) from 175 to 650 (Irvine and Chamberlain, 1994). <ref name="Irvine and Chamberlain 94"/> After his death his collection of specimens was purchased by the Museum of the Royal Norwegian Society for Sciences and Letters (Thor ''et al'', 2005) <ref name="Thor, Johansen and Nilsen 05"> '''Thor, E., Johansen, S and Nielsen, L.S.''' 2005. The collection of botanical letters to Michael H.Foslie in the Gunnerus Library: a Catalogue ''Gurreria'' '''78''': 7 — 22</ref> and there is a small collection of his in the Ulster Museum Herbarium: (Collection No. 42) entitled: ''Algae Norvegicae'' (Ulster Museum Herbarium catalogue (BEL): F10319 — F10334). F.Heydrich also described 84 taxa and was a bitter foe of Foslie. This left a legacy of complicated and still unresolved problems.<ref name="Woelkerling 88"/>
It was in the 19th Century that the true nature of lichens [http://www.wikipendia.org/wiki/lichens], as organisms consisting of an alga and a fungus in specific association, was demonstrated by Schwendener in 1867. This removed a source of confusion in morphology and classification (Morton, 1981 p.432).<ref name="Morton 81"/> It was in this period (1859) that [[Charles Darwin]] (1809 — 1882) published his book on [[evolution]]:''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection,...''.
==20th century==
In 1895 Börgesen started his study of the Faeröes and published his work in 1902 (Börgesen, 1902).<ref name="Börgesen 02">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1902. The marine algae of the Faeröes ''Bot of the Faeröes.'' Part II. Copenhagen</ref> Later between 1920 and 1936 he published his research on the algae of the [[Canary Islands]]. <ref name="Börgesen 25"> '''Börgesen, F.''' 1925. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially from Teneriffe and Grand Cararia. I. Chlorophyceae. ''Biol. Meddr'' '''5''': 1 — 123 </ref><ref name="Börgesen 26"> '''Börgesen, F.''' 1926. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially from Teneriffe and Grand Canaria. II. Phaeophyceae. ''Biol. Meddr'' '''6''': 1 — 112</ref><ref name="Börgesen 27">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1927. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially from Teneriffe and Gran Canary. III, Rhodophyceae. Part I, Bangiales and Nemalionales. ''K. Danske Vidensk. Selsk. Skrifter, Biol. Meddr.'' '''6''': 1 — 97</ref><ref name="Börgesen 29">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1929. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially from Teneriffe and Gran Canaria. III. Rhodophyceae. 2, Cryptonemiales, Gigartinales and Rhodymeniales. ''Biol. Meddr'' '''8''':1 — 97</ref><ref name="Börgesen 30">'''Börgesen, F.''' 1930. Marine algae from the Canary Islands especially Teneriffe and Gran Canaria. ''Biol. Meddr'' '''9''': 1 — 159</ref>
In 1935 and 1945 [[Felix Eugen Fritsch]] (1879 — 1954) published in two volumes his treatise: ''The Structure and Reproduction of the Algae''. These two volumes detail virtually all that was then known about the morphology and reproduction of the algae. However knowledge of algae has so greatly increased since then it would be impossible for these to be to bring to be brought up-to-date, nevertheless reference is often made to them. Other valuable works published in the 1950s include ''Cryptogamic Botany.'' written by Gilbert Morgan Smith (1885 — 1959), the algal volume (no.1) was published in 1955. In the following year (1956), ''Die Gattungen der Rhodophyceen.'' by Herald Johann Kylin (1879 — 1949) was published posthumously. Other phycologists who contributed massively to the knowledge of algae include: Elmer Yale Dawson (1918 — 1966) who published over 60 papers on the algae of the North American Pacific seas (Papenfuss, 1976). <ref name="Papenfuss"/>
==The development of public awareness==
The number of books published in the mid to late 1800s shows how interest in the natural world developed. Books on algae were written by: Isabella Gifford (1853) ''The Marine Botanist...'', some of her specimens are in the Ulster Museum; D. Landsborough (c.1779 — 1854) ''A Popular History of British Seaweeds,...'' third edition published in 1857; Louisa Lane Clarke (c.1812 - 1883) ''The Common Seaweeds of the British Coast and Channel Islands;...'' in 1865; S.O.Gray (1828 — 1902) ''British Sea-weeds:...'' published 1867 and W.H.Grattann ''British Marine Algae:...''published about 1874. These books were for the ''common'' people.
In 1902 Edward Arthur Lionel Batters (1860 — 1907) published "A catalogue of the British Marine algae." (Batters, 1902). <ref name="Batters 02">'''Batters, E.A.L.''' 1902. A catalogue of the British Marine Algae. ''J. Bot., Lond.'' '''40'''(Suppl.): 1 — 107</ref> In this he detailed records of algae found on the shores of the British Isles with the localities. This was the start of a new approach, the bringing together of records, detailed keys, checklists and mapping schemes.
The process accelerated in the 20th century. Lilly Newton (née Batten) (1893 — 1981) Professor in Botany at the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth and Professor Emeritus in 1931 wrote: ''A Handbook of the British Seaweeds.''<ref name="Newton 31">'''Newton, L.''' 1931. ''A Handbook oof the British Seaweeds.'' British Museum, London</ref> This was the first, and for quite a time, the only book for identification of seaweeds in the [[British Isles]] using a botanical key. In 1962 [[Eifion Jones]] published: ''A key to the genera of the British seaweeds''. <ref name="Jones 64">'''Jones, W.Eifion''' 1964. A Key to the Genera of the British Seaweeds. ''Field Studies,'' '''1''': 1 — 32 </ref> This small booklet provided a valuable source bridging the period before the valuable series ''Seaweeds of the British Isles'' was produced by the British Museum (Natural History) or The [[Natural History Museum]].
Research advanced so quickly that the need for an up-to-date checklist became apparent. Mary Parke (1902 — 1981), who was a founder member of the British Phycological Society, produced a preliminary checklist of British marine algae in 1953, corrections and additions of this were published in 1956, 1957 and 1959. In 1964 M.Parke and Peter Stanley Dixon (1929 — 1993) published a revised check-list, a second revision of this was produced in 1968 and a third revision in 1976. Distribution was added to the checklist in 1986 with G.R.South and I.Tittley's ''A Checklist and Distributional Index of the Benthic Marine Algae of the North Atlantic Ocean''. In 2003 ''A Check-list and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland'' was published by Gavin Hardy and Michael Guiry with a revised edition in 2006 . This shows how rapidly knowledge of algae, at least in the [[British Isles]], advanced. First efforts had been made by interested biologists and people capable of identifying the algae, this required books using the botanical names. Botanical keys to identify the plants then developed, followed by checklists. As more information was brought to light by interested workers, some volunteers, the checklists were improved and eventually a mapping scheme brought together all this information. The same pattern of knowledge developed with [[birds]], [[mammals]] and [[flowering plants]], though to a different time-scale and knowledge in other parts of the world has developed to this degree.
===Numbers and checklists===
As records were collected the need to draw all the information together advanced. Checklists and annotated checklists were produced and updated so the actual numbers of different species became more precise. At first this was quite local. Threlkeld, in 1726, produced the first attempt at an enumeration of Irish Algae and in 1802 William Tighe published his "Marine plants observed at the County of Wexford," it included 58 marine and 2 freshwater species. In 1804 Wade published ''Plantae Rariores in Hibernia Inventae,'' in which 51 species of marine and 4 species of freshwater algae were enumerated. In the north of Ireland [[John Templeton (Botanist)]] and [[William Thompson (naturalist)|William Thompson]] were at work publishing on the algae of Ireland. In 1836 Mackay published his ''Flora Hibernica'' including 296 species. Adams, in his synopsis of 1908, listed a total of marine species reaching 843.<ref name="Adams 08"> '''Adams,J.''' 1908. A synopsis of Irish algae, freshwater and marine. ''Prog. Roy. Irish. Acad.'' '''27B''': 11 - 60</ref>
In more localised lists Adams (in 1907) listed the species of County Antrim <ref name="Adams 07"> '''Adams, J.''' 1907. The Seaweeds of the Antrim Coast. ''Scient. Pap. Ulster Fish. Biol. Ass.,'' '''1''': 29 - 37</ref> noted that of the 747 species included in "Batter's List" <ref name="Batters 02">'''Batters, E.A.L.''' 1902. A catalogue of the British Marine Algae. ''J. Bot., Lond.'' '''40'''(Suppl.): 1 — 107</ref> he recorded 211 species from the Co. Antrim coast. In 1907 a list of marine aslgae from [[Lambay Island]] (County Dublin) was published by Batters. <ref name="Batters 07">'''Batters, A.L.''' 1907. A preliminary list of the marine algae. ''Ir. Nat.'' '''16''':107 - 110</ref> In 1960 A preliminary list of the marine algae of Galloway coast was published. <ref name="Burrows 60">'''Burrows, E.M.''' 1960. A preliminary list of the marine algae of the Galloway coast. ''Br phycol. Bull.'' '''2''': 23 - 25</ref>
At the international level there are well over 3,000 species of alga in Australia.<ref name="Huisman 00"/>
===Identification===
As the study and identification of the different species, became more extensive it became clear that identification was not at all easy. Harvey's 1846 - 51 ''Phycologia Britannica.'' along with his other publications makes no effort to provide "keys" to help in the identification. In 1931 Newton's Handbook <ref name="Newton 31"/>which gave the first key to assist in the identification of algae of the British Isles, in the same year Knight and Park gave a key in their "Manx Algae." <ref name="Knight and Park 31">'''Knight,M. and Park, M.W.''' 1931. Manx algae. An algal survey of the south end of the Isle of Man, ''Proc. Trans. L'pool biol. Soc.'' '''45'''(Appendix II): 1 155</ref> [[Eifion Jones]] in 1962, wrote a key to the genera of British seaweeds.<ref name="Eifion 64">'''Jones,W.E.''' 1964. A Key to the Genera of the British Seaweeds. ''Field Studies'' '''1''': 1 — 32</ref> Others soon followed: Dickinson wrote one entitled ''British Seaweeds.''<ref name="Dickinson 63">'''Dickinson, C.I.''' 1963 ''British Seaweeds.''The Kew Series Eyre & Spottiswood </ref> and Adey and Adey (1973) gave keys to the identification of the Corallinaceae of the British Isles.<ref name="Adey and Adey 73">'''Adey, W.H. and Adey, P.J.''' 1973. Studies on the Biosystematics and ecology of the epilithic crustose Corallinaceae of the British Isles. ''Br.phycol.J.'' '''8''': 343 - 407</ref> Abott and Hollenberg, in 1976, published keys to the identification of algae of [[California]]. <ref name="Abbott and Hollenberg 76"> '''Abbott, I.A. and Hollenberg, G.J.''' 1976. ''Marine Algae of California.'' Stanford University Press, California. ISBN 0-8047-0867-3</ref>
==The evolution of classification in the algae==
Linnaeus's "sexual system" (Linnaeus, 1754) <ref name="Linnaeus 54">'''Linnaeus, C.''' 1754. Genera plantarum. Holmiae.</ref> in which he grouped plants according to the number of stamens and carepels in the flowers, although wholly artificial was advantageous in that a newly discovered plant could be fitted in amongst those already known. He divided the plant kingdom into 25 classes, one of which was the Cryptogamia - plants with "concealed reproductive organs" (see above) (Smith, 1955).<ref name="Smith 55"/> Linnaeus accepted 14 genera of algae of which only four, Conferva, ''[[Ulva]],'' ''[[Fucus]]'' and ''[[Chara]],'' contained organisms now regarded as algae (Dixon, 1973 p.231).<ref name="Dixon 73">'''Dixon, P.S.''' 1973, ''Biology of the [[Rhodophyta]].'' Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh. ISBN 0 05 002485 X</ref> As a consequence of the great increase in the number of species the artificiality of the Linnaean system was appreciated so that during the 18th Century and early 19th Century considerable numbers of new genera were described. J.V.F.Lamouroux in 1813 <ref name="Lamouroux 13"> '''Lamouroux,J.V.F.''' 1813. Essai sur les genres de la famille de Thalassiophytes, non articulées. ''Annls Mus. natn. Hit. nat., Paris,'' '''20''': 115 — 139; 267 — 294</ref> was the first to separate the groups on the basis of colour, however this was not taken up by other botanists and it was Harvey, who in 1836, divided the algae into four major devisions solely on the basis of their pigmentation: Rhodospermae (red algae), Melanospermae (brown algae), Chlorospermae (green algae) and Diatomaceae (Dixon,1973 p.232).<ref name="Dixon 73"/>
In 1883 and 1897 Schmitz separated the Rhodophyceae into two main groups. The first contained the Bangiales and the second the Nemoniales, Cryptonemiales, Gigartinales and Rhodymeniales (Newton, 1931).<ref name="Newton 31"/> The Rhodophyta are now arranged in the Orders: Porphyridiales, Goniotrichales, Erythropeltidales, Bangiales, Acrochaetiales, Colaconematales, Palmariales, Ahnfeltiales, Nemaliales, Gelidiales, Gracilariales, Bonnemaisoniales, Cryptonemiales, Hildenbrandiales, Corallinales, Gigartinales, Plocamiales, Rhodymeniales and Ceramiales. The Chlorophyta are arranged in the Orders: Chlorococcales, Microsporales, Chaetophorales, Phaeophilales, Ulvales, Prasiolales, Acrosiphoniales, Cladiphorales, Bryopsidales, Chlorocystidales, Klebsormidiales and Ulotrichales. The Heterokontophyta: Sphacelariales, Dictyotales, Ectocarpales, Ralfsiales, Utleriales, Sporochniales, Tilopteridales, Desmarestiales, Laminariales and the Fucales (Hardy and Guiry, 2006). <ref name="Hardy and Guiry 03">'''Hardy, F.G. and Guiry, M.D.''' 2006. ''A Check-list and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland'' (Hardy and Guiry, 2006). British Phycological Society, London. ISBN 3-906166-35-X</ref>
Recently (1990s) The Kingdom: [[Protoctista]] has been recommended <ref name="Margulis et al 90"> '''Margulis, L., Corliss. John, Melkonian, M. and Chapman, D.J.''' 1990. ''Handbook of Protoctista.'' Jones and Bartlett, Boston. ISBN 0-86720-052-9</ref> however this has not been accepted by many authors.
==Obituaries, memoria and appreciations of distinguished Phycologists:-==
* [[Elsie M. Burrows]] (Dr.) (1913 — 1986) Norton, T.A. 1987. Obituary: ''Br.phycol.J.'' '''22''': 317 — 319.
* Blackler, Margaret Constance Helen (1902 — 1981) Irvine, D.E.G. and Russell, G. 1982. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''17''': 343 — 346.
* Elsie Conway (née) Phillips) (1902 — 1992) Visited University of British Columbia in 1969 — 1970 and researched there in 1972 — 1974. She was president of the British Phycological Society 1965 — 1967. Retired in 1969. Boney, A.D. 1993 An appreciation. ''The Phycologist'' '''35''': 3.
* de Váléra, Máirin (1912 — 1984). Guiry, M.D. and Dixon, P.S. 1985. Obituary: ''Br. Phycol. J.'' '''20''': 81 — 84.
* Dixon, Peter Stanley (1929 — 1993). Murray, S.N. and Scott, J.L. 1995. In Memoriam Peter Stanley Dixon (1929 - 1993) ''Phycologia'' '''34''': 538 — 543.
* [[Eifion Jones]], Willian (1925 — 2004). Fogg, T. 2004. 2004 In memoriam.; ''The Phycologist.'' '''67''': 19.
* Irvine, David Edward Guthrie (1924 — 1995). Fletcher, R.L. 1996: Obituary : ''The Phycologist'' '''4''': 3 — 7.
* Manton, Irene. (1904 — 1988). Leedale, G. 1989. Obituary: ''Br phycol. J.'' '''24''' :103 — 109.
* Newton, Lilly (née Batten) (1893 — 1981). Jones, G. 1982. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''17''': 1 — 4.
* Papenfuss, George Frederik (1903 — 1981). Abbott, I.A. 1982. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''17''': 347 — 349.
* Parke, Mary (1908 — 1989). Green, J.C. 1990. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''25''': 211 — 216.
* Taylor, William Randolph. (1895 — 1990). Hillis, L. 1992. Obituary: ''Br. phycol. J.'' '''27''': 1 — 2.
===Miscellaneous Notes===
* Máirin de Valéra (1912 — 1984). Professor Emerita of Botany at University College, Galway.
Publications:-
De Valéra, M. 1958. ''A topographical guide to the seaweed of Co. Galway Bay with some brief notes on other districts on the west coast coast of Ireland.'' Institute for Industrial Standards and Rersearch Dublin, Dublin.
De Valéra, M. 1959. The Third International Seaweed Symposium at University College, Galway. 1958, ''Irish Naturalists' Journal'' '''13''': 18 - 19.
De Valéra, M. 1960. Interesting seaweeds from the shores of the Burren. ''Irish Naturalists' Journal.'' '''13''': 168.
De Valéra, M. * Cooke, P.J. 1979. Seaweed in Burren grykes. ''Irish Naturalists' Journal.'' '''19''': 435 - 436.
De Valéra, M., Pybus, C., Casley, B. & Webster, A. 1979. 1979. Littoral and benthic investigations on the west coast of Ireland.X. Marine algae of the northern shores of the Burren, C. Clare. ''Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy.'' '''79B''': 259 - 269.
* Edward Batters (1860 — 1907). B.A.; FLS 1883
* Elmer Yale Dawson (1918 — 1966).
* Kathleen M. Drew Baker (...1925 — 1927...). University of Manchester. President of the British Phycological Society 1953.
* Margaret Constance Helen Blackler (1902 — 1981). Assistant Keeper of Botany, Liverpool Museum (1933 — 1945). In 1947 joined staff University St Andrews.
* Peter Stanley Dixon (1929 — 1993). Professor Emeritus of Biology at University of California.
* William Dwyn Isaac (1905 — 1995).
* Harald Kylin (...1906 — 1949...). Author: ''Die Gattengen der Rhodophyceen.'' 1956 CWK Gleerups Förlag,Lund. Specimens in [[Ulster Museum]]....
* George Russell (...1983 — 1984...). President of British Phycological Society 1983 - 1984.
===References Noted===
<references/>
==Further Reading==
'''Darwin, C. R.''' 1859. ''On the Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection,...'' London: John Murray, London.
'''Farlow, W.G.''' 1881. The marine algae of New England. ''Report of U.S. Fish Commission'' ''1879'' :Appendix A-1, 1 — 210.
'''Fritsch, F.E.''' 1935. ''The Structure and Reproduction of the Algae''. Vol. '''1'''. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
'''Fritsch, F.E.''' 1945. ''The Structure and Reproduction of the Algae''. Vol. '''2'''. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
'''Gatty, M.''' 1863. ''British Seaweeds.'' London.
'''Gifford, I.''' 1853. ''The Marine Botanist;...'' Longman and Co., London.
'''Grattan, W.H.''' (1874?) ''British Marine Algae:'' London.
'''Gray, S.O.''' 1867. ''British Sea-weeds:...'' London.
'''Hardy, F.G. and Guiry, M.D.''' 2003. ''A Checklist and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland.'' British Phycological, London.
'''Hardy, F.G. and Guiry, M.D.''' 2006. ''A Checklist and Atlas of the Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland - Revised Edition.'' British Phycological, London. ISBN 3-906166-35-X
'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1833. Algae, in W.J.Hooker and G.A.W.Arnott, ''The Botany of Captain Beechey's Voyage''... London. pp. 163 - 165.
'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1846 - 1851. ''Phycologia Britannica,...'' London.
'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1847 - 1849. ''Nereis Australis Or Algae Of the Southern Ocean''. Reeve, London.
'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1852- 1858. Pt 1 - 111 ... Nereis boreali-americana... ''Smithsonian Contr. to Knoweledge.''
'''Hooker, W.J.''' 1833. Cryptomaia Algae [pp.264 - 322] in. Hooker, W.J. ''The English Flora of Sir James Edward Smith.'' Class xxiv, Cryptogamia. Vol V, Part 1.
'''Landsborough, D.''' 1857. ''A Popular History of British Seaweeds,...'' London: Reeve, Benham & Reeve.
'''Parke, M.''' 1953. A preliminary check-list of British marine algae. ''J.Mar. Biol. Assoc. U.K.'' '''32''': 497 - 520.
'''Parke, M. and Dixon, P.S.''' 1964. A revised check-list of British marine algae. ''J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K.'' '''44''': 499 - 542.
'''Parke, M. and Dixon, P.S.''' 1968. Check-list of British marine algae - second revision. ''J. Mar. Biol. Ass. U.K.'' '''48''': 783- 832.
'''Parke, M. and Dixon, P.S.''' 1976. Check-list of British marine algae - third revision. ''J. Mar. Biol. Assoc. U.K.'' '''56''': 527 - 594.
'''Ross, H.C.G. and Nash, R.''' 1985. The development of natural history in early nineteenth century Ireland. ''From Linnaeus to Darwin: commentaries on the history of biology and geology.'' Society of Natural History, London. 1985.
'''South, G.R. and Tittley, I.''' 1986. ''A Checklist and Distributional Index of the Benthic Marine Algae of the North Atlantic Ocean.'' St Andrews and London.
==Internal links==
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_botanists - List of Botanists
==External links==
*http://users.ugent.be/phycology/harvey/ W.H.H. Phycologia Australica
*http://www.botanicgardens.ie/ National Botanic Gardens of Ireland.
*http://www2.nrm.se/fbo/hist/linnaeus/linnaeus.html.en Carl Linnaeus Botanical History
*http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/linnaeus.html Carl Linnaeus
*http://www.algaebase.org/ listing the world's algae
*http://www.seaweed.ie/ Seaweed Site
*http://www.mba.ac.uk/ Marine Biological Assoc. of UK
*http://www.brphycsoc.org/ British Phycological Society
*http://www.intphycsoc.org/ International Phycological Society
*http://www.schweizerbart.de/j/algological-studies/ Algological Studies is an international journal of phycological
*http://www.psaalgae.org/ Phycological Society of America
*http://www.phycology.net/ The Phycology.Net
==See also==
*[[Algae]]
*[[Botany]]
{{History of biology}}
[[Category:History of biology|Phycology, history of]] List of botanists
[[Category:Algae]]