Coolia Meunier, 1919
Holotype species: Coolia monotis Meunier
Original publication and holotype designation: Meunier, A. (1919). Microplancton de la mer Flamande. 3me partie. Les Péridiniens. Mémoires du Musée Royal d'Histoire Naturelle de Belgique 8(1): 1-111, 7 pls.
Request PDFDescription: Unicellular, small-to-medium-sized (25-60 µm) biflagellated heterodynamic, phototrophic flagellates with cell wall of cellulosic plates. Plate formula : Po, 3', 7", 7c, 8(?)s, 5"', 2"". Characteristic is the displacement of the apical pore with an elongated slit to the left dorsal side of the episome, therefore the axis of the cell is inclined dorsoventrally. Cingulum deeply impressed, median, slightly displaced;. The transverse flagellum is located in the cingulum, the longitudinal one in the sulcus which is restricted to the hyposome and bordered by sulcal lists. The dinokaryotic nucleus is subspherical, slightly elongated. Many discoid golden-brown chloroplasts are present, a stigma absent. A large, round pusule is visible at the juncture of cingulum and sulcus. Vegetative reproduction by binary fission inside the mother theca, apparently restricted to the first few hours of the light-dark-cycle. Recently divided daughter cells remain attached for 12 to 24 hours. Sexual reproduction by isogamous gametes very similar to vegetative cells. Gamete appears aligned with the two cingula perpendicular to each other forming a copulation bridge. The two nuclei move toward each other and form one large nucleus of the newly formed planozygote. After karyogamy and plasmogamy the planozygote with a size of 70 to 80 &m remained motionless about 1 day, then swimming for about 3 days. During the complicated maturation process the zygote varies in size and internal organization, shedding and rebuilding the theca. Eventually after about 1 week, a thin-walled hypnozygote is formed. Meiosis occurs in the hypnozygote, so far nuclear cyclosis was not observed, and four nonmotile daughter hatched from the zygote terminating sexual reproduction. Resting cysts so far not recorded. Coolia is repeatedly found together with dinoflagellates responsible for ciguatera poisoning but so far no ciguatoxin producing strain had been cultivated. In contrast, one strain produced a toxin with similar effects as yessetoxin.
Information contributed by: M. Elbrächter. The most recent alteration to this page was made on 2024-06-11 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: Leaw, C.P., Tan, T.H., Lim, H.C., Teng, S.T., Yong, H.L., Smith, K.F., Rhodes, L., Wolf, M., Holland, W.C., Vandersea, M.W., Litaker, R.W., Tester, P.A., Gu, H., Usup, G. & Lim, P.T. (2016). New scenario for speciation in the benthic dinoflagellate genus Coolia (Dinophyceae). Harmful Algae 55: 137-149.
Comments: Marine, coastal regions of warm to tropical oceans including the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic coast of France. Epiphytic on macroalgae, corals, or coral rubber, also in mangrove habitat.
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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=44629
Citing AlgaeBase
Cite this record as:
M.D. Guiry in Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. 11 June 2024. AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. https://www.algaebase.org; searched on 24 November 2024
