ABSTRACT
Algae are photosynthetic eukaryotes whose taxonomic breadth covers a range of branches of the tree of life. Green, red and brown macroalgae have made the transition from simple multicellularity to complex multicellular body plans. This chapter will describe what is known about developmental events in each macroalgal lineage and discuss the developmental features of each group that are currently under investigation in relation to the evolution of multicellularity.
