Nodularia Mertens ex Bornet & Flahault, 1886, nom. cons.
Holotype species: Nodularia spumigena Mertens ex Bornet & Flahault
Original publication and holotype designation: Bornet, É. & Flahault, C. (1886 '1888'). Revision des Nostocacées hétérocystées contenues dans les principaux herbiers de France (quatrième et dernier fragment). Annales des Sciences Naturelles, Botanique, Septième Série 7: 177-262.
Request PDFDescription: Filamentous; filaments solitary or in groups or clusters, rarely in mats, isopolar, unbranched (without false or true branching), more or less straight, curved, coiled or irregularly spirally coiled with fine, diffluent sheaths of a special two-layered structure (type species), opened at both ends. Trichomes uniseriate, cylindrical, rarely short and slightly attenuated at the ends of developed trichomes, constricted at crosswalls, metameric, with more heterocytes in more or less regular distances from one another. Cells shortly barrel-shaped, their length never exceeds the width, with (planktonic species) or without (benthic species) gas vesicles joined in the aerotopes (two mentioned groups of species differ cytologically and ecologically subgenera ?); gas vesicles occur facultatively only in planktonic species. Cell content yellowish, pale olive-green or blue-green, thylakoids irregularly coiled, spread all over the cell volume, sometimes more gathered in the peripheral layer of cells. Heterocytes of the same shape of cells, sometimes slightly differ in their size (slightly smaller or larger than vegetative cells). Akinetes shortly barrel-shaped (shorter than wide), or spherical, developing apoheterocytic, but often with irregularities. Cells divide crosswise to the trichome axis and grow to original size before the next division, all cells capable of division, without meristematic zones. Reproduction by hormogonia, dissociation of trichomes, and by akinetes. Four defined species (including the type species N. spumigena) are planktonic with aerotopes within the cells forming sometimes heavy aquatic blooms. They occur rarely in freshwater reservoirs, mainly in slightly saline or brackish waters, saline and coastal lakes (Baltic Sea; estuaries of rivers Spain, Australia; lakes in Western coast of North America, etc.). Three species are benthic, always without aerotopes, occurring in coastal or inland saline and mineral pools, marshes and lakes (N. harveyana), in alkaline streams and in littoral of lakes and pools (N. sphaerocarpa) or in rice fields as an important nitrogen fixer (N. willei). N. harveyana has probably cosmopolitan distribution, N. sphaerocarpa is known mainly from the temperate zone (Europe), N. willei is probably pantropic. From other little known species, one is described from Antarctica, few taxa live surely in soils (probably special species), one species was described from thermal waters.
Information contributed by: J. Komárek. The most recent alteration to this page was made on 2023-03-06 by M.D. Guiry.
Taxonomic status: This name is of an entity that is currently accepted taxonomically.
Gender: This genus name is currently treated as feminine.
Most recent taxonomic treatment adopted: Strunecký, O., Ivanova, A.P. & Mares, J. (2022 '2023'). An updated classification of cyanobacterial orders and families based on phylogenomic and polyphasic analysis (Review). Journal of Phycology 59(1): 12-51.
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Contributors
Some of the descriptions included in AlgaeBase were originally from the unpublished Encyclopedia of Algal Genera,
organised in the 1990s by Dr Bruce Parker on behalf of the Phycological Society of America (PSA)
and intended to be published in CD format.
These AlgaeBase descriptions are now being continually updated, and each current contributor is identified above.
The PSA and AlgaeBase warmly acknowledge the generosity of all past and present contributors and particularly the work of Dr Parker.
Descriptions of chrysophyte genera were subsequently published in J. Kristiansen & H.R. Preisig (eds.). 2001. Encyclopedia of Chrysophyte Genera. Bibliotheca Phycologica 110: 1-260.
Linking to this page: https://www.algaebase.org/search/genus/detail/?genus_id=43296
Citing AlgaeBase
Cite this record as:
M.D. Guiry in Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. 06 March 2023. AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. https://www.algaebase.org; searched on 20 April 2024
