Ancient lakes are centres of biological diversification that hold many examples of adaptive radiation and species flocks. The recently discovered species flock of Cladophoraceae in Lake Baikal is a group of green algae that exhibit low genetic divergence in ribosomal markers (LSU, SSU, and ITS), but wide morphological differentiation. Microsatellite markers showed evidence of polyploidy in this group

Understanding the physiological responses of kelp to environmental parameters is essential for the conservation of natural kelp beds and increased cultivation yield. We investigated the effects of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) and temperature on photosynthesis of a subarctic edible brown alga, Saccharina sculpera (Laminariales), using pulse amplitude modulation (PAM)–chlorophyll fluorometry

Ancient lakes are centres of adaptive radiation and speciation. The Cladophoraceae endemic to ancient Lake Baikal is a morphologically diverse group nested within Rhizoclonium that may represent a case of sympatric speciation. Recent research using ribosomal DNA markers indicates that these taxa form a monophyletic group but was not able to resolve boundaries between all of the investigated morphospecies

The marine red macroalga Gracilaria lemaneiformis usually experiences a changing carbonate system during mariculture. Thalli of G. lemaneiformis collected from Nanao Island, Shantou, China, were cultured in six treatments, with two inorganic carbon (Ci) levels (ambient-Ci, AC; elevated-Ci, EC) and three pH levels (8.2, 9.0, and 9.4), to examine the influence of increased Ci concentrations and high

Several species of Sargassum have been reported from the Yucatan peninsula coast, many of which end up as beach cast material, accumulating on the coast during colder months. The phenotypic plasticity of Sargassum makes specimen identification difficult. Two approaches were used in the current study to corroborate identification of the most abundant species: traditional taxonomic characters, and chemical

Kappaphycus alvarezii is one of the most farmed algae globally. It is used almost exclusively for the carrageenan industry, although there is increasing interest in its biotechnological application as a natural product with biological properties. This cultivated species produces different strains with distinct chemical and physiological properties. Despite this, K. alvarezii has been marketed as a

(2020). Correction. Phycologia: Vol. 59, No. 3, pp. 280-280.

This study describes two novel parasitic dinoflagellates: Haplozoon gracile sp. nov. isolated from a bamboo worm (Maldanidae), ‘cf. Petaloclymene sp.’ sensu Kobayashi et al. 2018; and, H. pugnus sp. nov. isolated from Nicomache sp. and Nicomache personata (Maldanidae). Trophonts (feeding stages) were observed with light, scanning, and transmission electron microscopy. Molecular phylogenetic analyses

A small red alga was isolated into culture from rhodoliths collected on the Piauí coast, northeastern Brazil. Molecular data from the plastid-encoded rbcL gene, combined with morphological and ultrastructural evidence, demonstrated that it belongs to the genus Rhodachlya and supports the proposal of a new species, R. westii. The new species was characterised by basal and erect uniseriate filaments

Local isolates of the species-rich, fast-growing chlorophyte genus Oedogonium have been employed in outdoor biomass cultivation for industrial applications such as wastewater remediation, but such isolates may not express structural traits needed for definitive species identification by microscopy alone. We used maximum likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic methods to evaluate molecular marker gene

Species level taxonomy and genetic structures of local populations of Ecklonia species (Laminariales, Phaeophyceae) distributed in northeastern Asia were examined using multigene molecular phylogeny of mitochondrial atp8–16S rDNA, cox1 and cox3, plastid atpB, psaA, psbA and rbcL gene sequences, and nuclear microsatellite markers. Japanese Ecklonia formed three to four clades with high to medium support

We studied how ecological factors affect species composition and structure of soil algal assemblages in different types of mountain tundra and sparse forests in the Northern Urals. Soil moisture, pH, nitrogen content and amount of solar radiation were determined using Ellenberg indicator values from phytoindicators. Species identification of soil algae was made using light microscopy following algal

The association between epizoic algae and animals is well known, and turtles are among the animals that most commonly host epibiont communities. The most studied algal component of the epizoic communities found on turtles is represented by diatoms, while other algal taxa, like the Rhodophyta, are less investigated. During a survey started to study the epibionts associated with loggerhead turtles, Caretta

The current study investigated diatom communities on juvenile green turtles foraging in neritic habitats around five Iranian islands. The primary objectives were to (1) compare species composition, growth form structure, and abundance of diatom communities associated with sea turtles foraging within the restricted boundaries of local feeding pastures, and (2) assess the level of uniqueness of the epizoic

(2020). List of reviewers - 2019. Phycologia: Vol. 59, No. 2, pp. 1-2.

Using mitochondrial COI-5P and plastid rbcL sequences, as well as morphological characteristics, two new species of Solieriaceae are added to the flora of Bermuda. Specimens collected over the past two decades representing those distributed in the early exsiccata, Phycotheca boreali-americana as Eucheuma gelidium (= Meristotheca gelidium) are shown to be a unique species of Meristotheca, M. odontoloma

In the current study, 334 specimens of Pterocladiella from China representing historical herbarium specimens and recent field collections were re-examined based upon morphological and molecular data analyses. Both datasets revealed the presence of P. beachiae, P. capillacea, P. caerulescens, and P. musciformis. Of these species, P. beachiae and P. musciformis were new records for China. Pterocladiella

Cryptophytes are a ubiquitous algal group and are important primary producers in aquatic ecosystems. Identification of lineages within the group is difficult because of their simple morphology and they are often enumerated at the class level in ecological research. Despite the increasing number of molecular probes used for identification of microorganisms, rRNA genes (i.e. nuclear 18S, ITS, and 28S

Ostreopsis mascarenensis is a toxic dinoflagellate described from the Indian Ocean based only on morphology, without molecular data. Morphological features of Ostreopsis have poor taxonomic value, and the addition of genetic data would ensure correct species identification. The present study reinvestigated field samples from Réunion Island and the western Indian Ocean to validate morphological and

A Cochlodinium-like species was isolated from the Korean coast and examined by light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The species was characterised by cellular torsion, cingulum with 1.25 turns and sulcus with 0.25 turn, and a hemispherical hypocone. The nucleus was curved, and sausage-shaped, and there were small, dark grains distributed at the cell periphery, which were also reported

A new species of Polycoelia, P. kurariirapa, is described from the Three Kings Islands/Manawatāwhi, representing the first record of the genus in New Zealand. Polycoelia includes two species from Australia, P. laciniata (generitype) and P. fastigiata, and one from South Africa, P. harveyana. Polycoelia kurariirapa shares with the two Australian species the characteristic vegetative anatomy of the genus

Molecular phylogenetic analyses based on mitochondrial cox1 and cox3 and chloroplast rbcL gene sequences revealed that the morphospecies of the brown alga Planosiphon gracilis (Scytosiphonaceae, Ectocarpales) from Japan is a complex of three distinct lineages (lineages I–III). Specimens from these lineages had the typical morphology of Pl. gracilis (i.e. flattened, linear, hollow, and gregarious erect

Two new Melobesioideae, Tectolithon fluminense gen. et sp. nov. and Crustaphytum atlanticum sp. nov., were described based on specimens collected at depths from 2 to 30 m in a tropical to subtropical transitional region of Southeast Brazil. Analyses of the plastid-encoded markers psbA and rbcL demonstrated that these taxonomic novelties belong to the clade formed by the typically subarctic/arctic Clathromorphum

Freshwater red algae have been collected on the African continent since the early 1800s. However, the collections have been sparse and geographically restricted. The present study sought to bring together information from the literature, herbarium specimens, and newly collected specimens to provide an updated assessment of the freshwater red algal diversity of the African continent with a focus on

The Gracilariaceae is a species-rich family, with a number of members having high commercial value as sources of agar. Members of this family are also known for their phenotypic plasticity and convergent morphologies, resulting in considerable taxonomic confusion. Over the past two decades, two species of Agarophyton (previously part of Gracilaria) have been recognised in New Zealand with very similar

Gonyaulax verior was initially described as Amylax diacantha from Belgian coastal waters a century ago but its detailed morphology needed restudy. Here, we established nine strains of G. verior by germinating cysts or isolating cells from localities from the European Atlantic to the Caspian Sea and the Pacific Ocean. Both cyst and thecal morphology were examined by light and scanning electron microscopy

Microalgae are important producers in aquatic ecosystems and are valuable for biodiesel production and feed supply industries. Three such microalgae, Nannochloropsis oceanica (Eustigmatophyceae), Dunaliella salina (Chlorophyceae), and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (Chlorophyceae), were cultured at two pCO2 (400 ppm, 1000 ppm) to investigate changes in fatty acid and amino acid composition. Elevated pCO2

Strains of the diatoms Attheya ussurensis, A. decora and A. longicornis, isolated from the northwestern Sea of Japan, were studied to infer their phylogeny and determine their systematic position. Morphological studies were conducted using light and transmission electron microscopy, and molecular analyses were based on nuclear-encoded small-subunit (18S) ribosomal DNA (rDNA) and ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate

Molecular analyses of recently acquired sequences from eight specimens from the Russian Pacific region (Kamchatka, Commander Islands and Kurile Islands) reveal necessary taxonomic changes for members of the family Kallymeniaceae: (1) Kallymeniopsis lacera, the generitype, is transferred to Erythrophyllum, resulting in the synonymy of these two genera; K. verrucosa from the Kurile Islands has not been

Pleodorina sphaerica Iyengar was considered to be a phylogenetic link between Volvox and the type species Pleodorina californica Shaw because it has small somatic cells distributed from the anterior to posterior poles in 64- or 128-celled vegetative colonies. However, cultural studies and molecular and ultrastructural data are lacking in P. sphaerica, and this species has not been recorded since 1951

Long-lasting, slowly melting snowfields in mountainous regions are frequently populated by specialised microalgae whose diversity is still vastly underestimated. Cysts causing sub-surficial green snow were collected in the Austrian Alps, Tyrol, and morphologically accorded to the snow alga Scotiella cryophila sensu Chodat, initially described from Switzerland. The cytology and photobiology of this

There is an interest to develop sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima) cultivation in the rural, eastern Maine region of the USA. Future farming efforts would benefit from an understanding of the genetic diversity and population structure of kelp, to inform management and conservation, and to identify genetic resources. The purpose of the present study was to characterize the fine-scale population genetic

Batrachospermum turfosum Bory is one of the generalists among the few red algae that have adapted to freshwater habitats, occurring in a variety of primarily shaded, nutrient-poor micro-habitats with lotic (running) or lentic (standing) waters. Seasonal variations in water level and canopy cover can expose this sessile alga to widely fluctuating temperatures, solar irradiation and nutrient availability

The genus Klebsormidium (Klebsormidiales, Streptophyta) has a worldwide distribution in terrestrial habitats. In the present study, we focused on two strains of Klebsormidium flaccidum, the type species of the genus. The isolates used in this study were isolated from a soil and freshwater habitat. Photosynthetic activity was evaluated under different controlled gradients of light, temperature and desiccation

Our knowledge of the processes involved in speciation of microalgae remains highly limited. In the present study, we investigated a potential role of ecological speciation processes in diversification of the filamentous green alga Klebsormidium. We examined 12 strains representing four different genotypes. The strains were collected from sandstone and limestone rocks and were cultivated at five different

Species of the genus Mastocarpus exhibit two distinct life cycles, a sexual alternation of generations and an obligate, asexual direct life cycle that produces only female upright fronds. In the intertidal red alga, M. papillatus (Kützing) sexual fronds dominate southern populations and asexual fronds dominate northern populations along the northeast Pacific coast, a pattern of spatial separation called

Electronic cell sorting for isolation and culture of dinoflagellates and other marine eukaryotic phytoplankton was compared to the traditional method of manually picking cells using a micropipette. Trauma to electronically sorted cells was not a limiting factor, as fragile dinoflagellates, such as Karenia brevis (Dinophyceae), survived electronic cell sorting to yield viable cells. The rate of successful

Young and old cultures (up to 66 months) of two Chroococcidiopsis sp. strains isolated from the Negev desert, Israel, were examined by epifluorescence and electron microscopy. In old cultures, cell viability and autofluorescence were lower than in young cultures. An increase was seen with age in the polysaccharide content of the sheaths of nanocytes and nanocyte mother cells, and a decrease of phycobiliproteins

Prochloron is a genus of prokaryotic algae with photosynthetic pigments like those of chlorophytes. Prochlorophytes are almost invariably found associated as symbionts with marine protochordates (didemnid ascidians), and so far none has been successfully grown in sustained culture away from in host. Based on materials collected from nature, information of various sorts (biochemical, physiological,

Hemichloris antarctica gen. et sp. nov. (Oocystaceae, Chlorococcales) is characterized by a single, articulated, pyrenoid-less, thick saucer-shaped chloroplast, which generally fills less than half of the cell periphery. Multiplication is only by autospores. The species is psychrophilic and is damaged at temperatures above 20 degree C. Hemichloris antarctica is a member of the cryptoendolithic microbial