Thallus stipitate with peltate blades. Blades circular when young, stellate with ligulate lobes when mature. Regularly anastomosing with blades of other thalli or reattaching to the substratum, gregarious. Structure multiaxial, cortex of 3-4 layers of small cells, medulla of several layers of large colorless cells. Spermatangia formed from surface cells on both surfaces of the blades. Procarpic, carpogonial branches 4-celled; auxiliary cells branches 2-celled gonimoblast developing outwards. Cystocarps ostiolate, often with an elongated neck, scattered, never coronate, strongly protruding outwards, tela arachnoidea absent. Tetrasporangia formed from intercalary cortical cells mostly on the ventral surface of the blades, scattered or aggregated into clusters. Spores regularly cruciately arranged.

Link for Algaebase

Huisman, J.M. & Millar, A.J.K. (1996). Asteromenia (Rhodymeniaceae, Rhodymeniales), a new red algal genus based on Fauchea peltata. Journal of Phycology 32: 138-145, 17 figs, 1 table.

Saunders, G.W., Lane, C.E., Schneider, C.W. & Kraft, G.T. (2006). Unraveling the Asteromenia peltata species complex with clarification of the genera Halichrysis and Drouetia (Rhodymeniaceae, Rhodophyta). Canadian Journal of Botany 84: 1581-1607, 83 figs, 3 tables.