Erythropsidinium P.C.Silva, 1960
Holotype species: Erythropsidinium agile (Hertwig) P.C.Silva
Original publication and holotype designation: Silva, P.C. (1960). Remarks on Algal Nomenclature. III. Taxon 9(1): 18-25.
Request PDFDescription: Unicellular biflagellated heterodynamic medium-sized to large (50-120 &m long, without tentacle-like "piston") cells with conspicuous ocelloid in the apical region. Episome very small, with a faint apical lamellae which gives the impression of a horn in some fixed cells. The sulcus is a straight line at the hyposome but extends on the episome, making one to two loops. The hyposome has the shape of a cylinder if extended but may appear more rounded if contracted. From the center of the hyposome a tentacle-like "piston" extends having a complicated ultrastructure. This piston can retract and extend to a length of more than 200 &m several times in one second. It terminates in a small stylet, which is not always present. The most distinctive organelle is the ocelloid. It is composed of a lens, a retinoid and a pigment cup. This organelle is derived from chloroplasts. During binary cell division, the ocelloid is reorganized, the lens is fragmented. Recently divided cells had been regarded as separate species, belonging to different subgenera. Therefore, the number of recognized species has been reduced to about four. The elongated nucleus is of the dinokaryon type, situated centrally. Chloroplasts absent. Cell division is by binary fission in the motile stage, daughter cells remain attached to each other in chains of two for some hours. Some cells have been found surrounded by a hyaline temporary cyst. Sexual reproduction and resting cysts so far not reported. Habitat: Marine plankton in warm to tropical oceanic waters of all oceans and the Mediterranean Sea.
Information contributed by: P. Hargraves. The most recent alteration to this page was made on 2017-05-23 by M.D. Guiry.
Taxonomic status: This name is of an entity that is currently accepted taxonomically.
Most recent taxonomic treatment adopted: Kawai, H. & Nakayama, T. (2015). Introduction (Heterokontobionta p.p.), Cryptophyta, Dinophyta, Haptophyta, Heterokontophyta (except Coscinodiscophyceae, Mediophyceae, Fragilariophyceae, Bacillariophyceae, Phaeophyceae, Eustigmatophyceae), Chlorarachniophyta, Euglenophyta. In: Syllabus of plant families. Adolf Engler's Syllabus der Pflanzenfamilien. Ed. 13. Phototrophic eukaryotic Algae. Glaucocystophyta, Cryptophyta, Dinophyta/Dinozoa, Haptophyta, Heterokontophyta/Ochrophyta, Chlorarachnniophyta/Cercozoa, Chlorophyta, Streptophyta p.p. (Frey, W. Eds), pp. 11-64, 103-139. Stuttgart: Borntraeger Science Publishers.
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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=46551
Citing AlgaeBase
Cite this record as:
M.D. Guiry in Guiry, M.D. & Guiry, G.M. 23 May 2017. AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. https://www.algaebase.org; searched on 22 November 2024
