Parent taxon: Cyanophyceae according to D. Vachard et al. 2016
See also Vachard and Aretz 2004
Sister taxa: Aphralysiaceae, Baratangia, Cayeuxia, Protorivularia, Ramivaginalis, Rivularites, Shermanophycus, Stylophycus, Weedia
Subtaxa: Baccanella Bacinella Clinortonella Garwoodia Hedstroemia Nostocites Ortonella Ortonellopsis
Ecology: stationary "photoautotroph"
Distribution:
• Cretaceous of Albania (1 collection), Austria (1), Bulgaria (2), Croatia (3), Egypt (2), France (13), Germany (7), Greece (3), Hungary (1), Iran (1), Italy (16), the Marshall Islands (1), Oman (5), Portugal (14), Romania (8), Somalia (1), Spain (4), Tunisia (1), Turkey (1)
• Jurassic to Cretaceous of Japan (1)
• Jurassic of Austria (2), the Czech Republic (3), France (2), Germany (3), Greece (1), Indonesia (1), Italy (11), Morocco (2), Myanmar (1), Portugal (6), Slovenia (2), Spain (3), Switzerland (1), Thailand (1), Tunisia (1), Ukraine (1)
• Triassic of Austria (15), Germany (5), Greece (4), Hungary (1), Indonesia (1), Iran (3), Israel (1), Italy (25), Japan (6), Malaysia (1), Oman (3), the Philippines (1), Romania (1), Serbia and Montenegro (1), Slovakia (2), Slovenia (8), Spain (1), Thailand (1), Turkey (3), United States (1: Oregon)
• Permian of Iran (1), Oman (1), Tajikistan (4), Turkey (1), United States (2: New Mexico, Texas)
• Carboniferous of Australia (1), Belgium (1), China (3), France (1), Ireland (1), Japan (3), the Russian Federation (1), Spain (1), the United Kingdom (5), United States (4: Arkansas, Colorado, Oklahoma)
• Givetian of China (1)
• Devonian of Australia (3), Austria (1), China (8), Germany (2), Italy (1), the Russian Federation (4), United States (1: New York)
• Silurian of Canada (3: Nunavut, Ontario, Québec), Sweden (2), United States (2: Alaska)
• Whiterockian of Canada (1: Newfoundland and Labrador)
• Ordovician of Canada (3: Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario, Quebec), China (6), Norway (1), the Russian Federation (3), United States (1: Tennessee)
• Cambrian of Canada (1: Northwest Territories), Italy (1), the Russian Federation (1)
Total: 287 collections including 367 occurrences