Insthuteof TerrestfialEcology

N A T U R A LF N VF O N M E N TH E S E A R CCHO U N C I L

guideto
A beginner's

Freshwater
Algae
llilarv Belcher& EricaSwale
CultureCentreof Algaeand Protozoa

Her Majestys SlaiionryOffice

CultureCeite ot Agae and Frotozoa

0 2 2 3 ( c . m b r d q o )6 1 3 / 3
T h eC u h u r eC o i r e o l A ! a e a n d P r o r o z o a
s part of the lnslitul. ol Terestra Ecotogy,
(hi.h rs, c.mp,renr brdf ol th.
N l u r a l E n vr o . m e n tF c s e . . c hC o u i . L

lntroduction
Thepurposeof thisbooklels to enablethosewho would rke
10make
somof the algaeoi freshwater
1o learnto recognise
a start.Fromthe verylargenumberof differeftgcnerawe
to be found,an.lwe
110 of thosemostlikeLv
haveselected
haveiiuslraledonespeciesbelonglngtoeach(A gerds.
pl.ra genera.s corgarabe w th the iamrlyn.me cI a person
'Wordswo(h'.and a rpecies.p ursispecles.
e
is comparab
eg
'W
liani.)The drawingsar n almost
with a firstname.eg
(exceptthoseof dia
everycasemadefrom liv ng spclmens

WI]ATAF ALGAE?
Aigalnc ude suchdiversegroupsof orllansmsthat one m3y
"

I n

"7

"1.

e"4n qr.er I e

c_1'nom^

'I'

o on i

oJ ght microscopes.
that in the eary daysof the development
ty
theiriull dLVers
and beforethoseoi electronmicroscopes.
couldnol be detecledThe cellsof somealgaeareof bac= 1/100Omm)
about1 um (1 nricrometre
lerialsize.ior example,
or about0 00004ins acrossOtherscontaina vastnumberof
cellsandcan be up to 50 m (over150 feet)long.1orexampe,
p ants,
the afgestseaweedsSomealgaearundotrbtedly
somed fier so litre frornbacleria
that they couldbe mernbels
ol a specal bacleral class,somgareanimalsor |nry show
cerian teatures
both of an malsand p ants Desp1ethes
faclsmosta gal 0roupshavcerlainfeaturesr common.
I\,4icroscoplc
a gae can be foLrndeverywhere,from permanent
snow and iceto deserts,
the oceans,akes,rivers,p!ddLes,
grasses
rocksand sorl.Just as the 1rees,
and herbseveryone
w th arelhe ftrnrnbasisof |ie on and.so a qae are
is famrliar
aboutthe
the basisof thatin the seaand.Indeed.proclLrce
samearnountof organicmatlerand oxygnas do land plants.
with the
comparable
Althoughthcre s nothng in freshwater
largetseaweeds,
thesea gaeshow a rangein sizefromthe
to traling folmsof more
smallestof aboutT um in diameter

HOWTO LOOKAT THEN4

To examinefreshweter
algaethe equipmenlrequiredneednot
be elaborate.A iew of the largergenefacan be ,dentifiedby a
h a n dl e n sa l o n e( m a g n l f i c a t i oonf sx 1 0 a n d x 2 0 ) .b u i a
m croscope
wh ch magnfiesar leastx100 is generally
essential.
At thisstagethereis no needat a I tor an o I
immersion
obtective.
lt wouldtaketoo muchspace.and it
would not be verysatisfectory,
to explainin detailhow to
mounta sampleof algaeon a qlassslideand how actualy
to !se a m croscooe.
Forthis a Je\/ nrlnLiles
demorstraiion
by someoneexperienced
is fiore valuable
thanpagesol
description.
Algaeusuallydie and decayIairlyrapldlyaflercollection.
Io
keepthem freshas longas possible.
do not overf I the continer,alwaysleavean air spaceand keepthe samplecool.
Planklonalgaemav be ealeoby assocatedanrmals(suchas
Daphnia,tlrc watet flea) in a short time. li presentrn notice'
ab e numberstheyshoud be strainedoff immediately
(a piece
of nylonstockingmakesa good sieve).
Samplesmay be preserved
by addingiodineso utionwhlch,
howevr,
lurnslhe chloropastbrovJi A saluraled
soluiionof
roore r,roolasrL^rrod,d6d rd walercon be oraporFo.
bul
ordinarytinclureof iodinewill do. lt is best10add it from a
droppingbottlauntllthe wholeis of a palcbrowncolour.lt is
importantto ensurethat the speclmenbortleor tubeof algae
is keptwell stoppered
as odineevaporates
readrly.
NQTES
ON TI]EDRAWINGS
Indication
of s zesof the algaedrawnls diflicultas thisvaries
so muchbelweenspecies.
evenof the samegenus(for in
srance,.e It ol Chlorcganiun ta.ge Irc'r] 5 15 L'm n length
lat C. euchbrunt b 25orn Iar C. maxtmum).)twould be
misleadrg to show,the srzeo{ eachspeciesillusrf6ted.
so we
havestaleda rangecoveringthe wholegenus.
The studentis stronglyadvsedro draw microscop
c objects
wheneverpossible.
Thereis no necessry to'be ableto draw'
to do this.What maiiefss havingyourown recordof what
the thing lookedI ke,to helpyou to remembert and to
Lrndersiand
rtsshape lils surprising
ho\1,trying
10draw
it makesofa look muchharderro seewhat ihe atgais realty
like.Always label ihe d.awing with the name(f Itte akJail
knownand add the dateandrhe placewhere I was rouno.

FICATION
CLASS
(see
To he p find lhe way in moreadvancedpub rcatrons
page46). the algaeincludedherearearrangedn thelrmajor
groupingsbelow:
including:
Greenalgae(Chlorophyceae),
(nos.1-14)
Swimmingcels and co onies(Volvocales),
Non motilecellsand colonles(Chlorococcales),
(nos.15-33)
F lamentous
algae(of variousfam lies).nos34-50)
Desmds (Conjugaes in paft),(nos.5'1-59)
(nos.60-63)
Yellow greenalgae(Xanthophyceae),
(nos.64-68)
Goldenye ow algae{Chrysophyceae).
(nos.69-85)
Distoms(Bacillariophyceae).
Cryptophyceae,
(no.86)
(nos.87,88)
Dinofagelates(Dinophyceae),
Euglcnoid
(nos.8S-91)
flage ates(Euglenophyceae),
(nos.92-95)
Bed algae(Rhodophyceae).
Blue-green
a gae (l\,lyxophyceae
or Cyanophyceae).
( n o s9 7 - 1 1 0 )

lsee the diapran apposhe)

Lnthe centreoi the ce I

Binary

vegetative
divrson of a free-living
cel into two
equa and separale
daughterce ls
lhe co ouredstructurein p Enrce ls which
absorbsI ght Lrsedn photosynthesisi
usual,
red or blLre-green
!lreenor brolvn,occasronally

Cyst

restingstaoewilh thickwa . fonnedfrom e

srngLc
ce
rsed of a plantwhich lrows on rnother.but not
/,rirp ike slrucllresusedbVcels lor swlmmng
bul diff cu t 10seeunlessstainedby iodineetc;
hnce'f a!,elatcs'-ce s swimmingby flagella.
ln.b. flageuLln s slnguar. plura f/agel/a)
hslf shellof a di.tom-see noteor diatoms
iol!oh,inqno.68
seenoteon dratomsand labeled diagram
colourless
structure
wh ch containshereditary
lyrngagainslthe wall of a cll
co eclrvelermfc'ran nralsand plafls whicl_
lLoalin walei and arecarriedpassvely by
a colouressstructurcassociated
w th the ch oro
plastand concerfedwjth starchfor.nallon
the Inearstr!.lurezlongibe canlreo, somedia
lom frustLr
es seelabe ed diagram

Signoid

oi an e ongatedS-shape.likGylrslgra no.80

Srellate

staashaped,mainy usdoJch oroplasts

Stiae

th stripelike nrarkrngs
oI a diaromfrLstule
seenoteon dralomsand abelled.l agram

Diagrammatic
structure
of somealgae

Flagellun

ALGALFLAGELLATE

Contractile
vacuole

Eyespot
Nucleus

Chloroplast

F I L A I IE N T O U S
G B E NA L G A

FiLA[4ENTOUS
BLUE.GREEN
ALGA

Chloroplast
Ceilwall

vegetatlve

DIATOM

Striae

1-GJrdle

Baphe

view

Chlorophyceae
: Greenalgae
Greenswirnmingcels lsee alsoEuglenaandPhacus)
Chlamydonanas.Avery big genusof round. oval or cylin,
clricalcels which swimwith two flagellaoi equallenglh.
T, "." rr"/ J. 1"/

rot ba a D. .a-o:cj. bLt a rpd pya 5po- .

lsuallypresent.
Thewall is smootf and ihin. Cetlscan be
trom 2 5 to 50sm or morein engrh,mosllyb20 (wlthout
ncludng the flagela.as in al rneasurements
in this bookleO.
FoLrnd
in everykind of aquarichabtat.speciesoi this genus
arthe mostlikeiygreenswimmingce s to be encounlefed.
Chlarcgoniun.Ihls has r,NaI agellaI ke Chlamydomonas
but s spindle-shaped.
Unlikethe srnnarlyshapedt/g/era
(89) il doesnot changej1s{orm 5 50gm tong (l rare
speciesreaches
250tm). and iound n pondsand rivers.
BBchionanas. Relaledb Chlamydamorasbut has a po nted
tarland fo!r ateralobeswh ch stickout of the body like
frfs. Sometlmes
found in bird-baths
anctln poolsnearihe
sea.10-50Umlong.
Pteromanas.Like Chlanydarnonasbut with a longltud nal
wing on eachsideof the body I ke an e m f.u t. Revovesas
rl swrms.is 10-25urnlong.and livesrn pondsand slow
rlvers4b, a ce ltn transverse
section
Haenatococcus.Cel s ova . 10-30um tong. conlents
separated
fromthe wa by a clearspacecrossedby radal
lhreads.
Thegreenchloroplast
is somelirnes
nrasked
by red
' i loL'6doil Tr e dan 6 oop ,td onsof
.-i<orgarr' oclL'r I g
in bird-baths.
wet ho ows in rocks,the depressrons
In m!n
halecoversand orhersma temporsry
water bodiesmav be
ertnerbngntgreenor rustyrd.
Loban)onas.Cellslike Chlamydonanas,3 2Esm long. with
ll obedor wavy out n. Occlrs n pldd es.pondsetc.s
doesrhe s m lar rrplosrauror,whr.h ssquare
Phacotus.Cels ike Chlamydomonas.
l O 20um rong.ano
iound rn similarp aces.bul eachis enclosedrn a wal
resembing rwo watchglasses
f ttingtogether,
sometimes
lnrn andtransparent
but moreoitenthickand scutprurecl.
Pytan)imanas.
Cellsovalor strawberry-shaped.
5,ZbUmlong,
w lh foLrrf ageliawhich arisefrom a prt ar the rronteno.
Antefioredgeof the chloraplast
depy dividdinrofour or
rqhtlobes,g ving the celta stripedappearance.
There s no
wall.3nd the ce I div desby binaryfissicn.ponds.p!ddtes

Chlorophyceae
: Greenalgae
Greenswimmingcolonies
Pyrcbotrys.Peat-shapedswimmingce ls b-25um lonq.
looseiyaltgfeqated
to {orma co ony.In hoof prinlsand other
puddlcsftchin organicmalter.Will somelimes
appearif
mud andwatertromthese s icft to standtogetherw th a
pieceof a driedpea.ThesimilarPascrer,?a
hasonly 4 cells
insteadof 8 of 16.
'10
Eudatina.Ihes'r.,alroundcells.5-15umlong.occurat the
surfaceof a globularcolony up to 20Osm across Sveral
one commonin puddles,ponds,lakesand rrvers.
species,
1 1 Pandarha. D)tfercftam Eudozra tn that the cellsiit c osely
logelharwitho!1a lafgeceniralspace Commonin puddles.
p o n d sl,a k e s a n rdi v e r sC. e l s8 - 2 0 u r no n g , c o o n i e s u p t o
50 um diameter.

12 Gorlum.Consists
of square,
flat.fouror 16 ce ledcolonies
!p to 100umacross.
Cells5-25Umlong.Common
in
ponds,
puddles.
lakesandslowrivers.
1 3 Stephanasphaeft- f he coloniesare characterisric
clear
globesLrpto 60um acrosscontsiningeightlargecettstike
thoseoi Haerlalo..rs afiangedln af equaiorial
nng.The
globerevovesas it swimsthroughthe water.Foundpar
ticularlyrn water-filled
solulionhollowsof lrrnesrone
rocKs.
l/o/yox.Coloniesvjsibc to the unaidedeve (up to I mm
across).
contanrnghundreds
of cells.Foundin puddes,
ponds.akesand slow rvers.Foran articledealjngwirlt this
and the previous
four genera.
seeJane,F.W., 1949.Famous
plan$: 1, Volvax,New Bialagy,6, S7-99.

Chlorophyceae
: Greenalgae
Greennon-motileunicelsand colonies(bur not Desmids)
Chlorella.Smallround or oval clls (2 1b um diameler)
wh ch divideintotl]voor four non-morrle
daughlercetts.
encosedfor a lrtllewhilewiihin lhe old watl,as shown.
FoJnoeue\ ^ toro.b.rtsonerTe, qs6L119 In va-l quan
trtresas a greensoupin can e-lroughs,
and similarplaces.
Fora ful er accountseeFogg.c. E..1953.Famousplants:4.
Chlorclla.New Bialosy,15,99-116. Chtotococcumard \s
all es <liffetlram Chlotellain producingmotilespores,each
wrth two flagella.
OocysrlsOvalor lemonshapedcells5 2ogm long.sometimesfo!nd 2 or 4 roqethernsrdethe ntarged
ctearmolher
cellwall Ponds,lakesand slow rivers.
1 1 Chodatella Like Oocystisin srzeand shape,but wilh several
slenderbnstles,
usuallyat eachend of the cell.Ponds.akes
and slow flvers.
1B Tetraddron.Lillle angulargreencells.5-20gm across.rouno
r^ oonds,lrl es ard sjow rive\ TwoLonrror specres
are
illustrated.
1 9 anlt.trcrj..nr" srarcr t. ( urv"dor qp,a rFedle\aapeo
ce ls up to 50um longor more.sometLmes
fqrmingbundtes
All lypesoi water-body,
common.The p ate shows1wo

2 0 Chahcium. Ovalot spindle-shapedgreence s with a long

or shortstalkgrowingattachedto varioustilamentous
algae
and othersubstrata.
Lengthincludlngsralkup to 80Um
Cornmon.
21 Acthastrum.Coloniesol fou. or eiqhtcigar-shaped
cetts.
10-25 ffir onq,uniteda! one endto form a siar.Ponds.
lakesand slow rivers.
22 Micracrintum Round cells 3-2Oum across.each wiih one or
morelongslenderbristles,
ottenin colontesas shown.
Planktonof lakesand slow rivers.

Chlorophyceae
: Greenalgae
Greennon motileunicellsand colonies
23

CoelasLrum.
Non-motileroundrshcels unitedclosey to form
spherrcal
colonlesup to I00Um across.p ankion!i takes.
pondsand slow rivers
24 Pedtastrun.
F at disc shapedcolonies,
!p to l00um across,
of 4lo 32 cels.with a serrared
peredgoand somerims
foraled.Ponds,lakesandslow rivrs.
2 5 Ctu.i(rcnia.Flal p alsof oval cel s uf red in groupsof four,
wh ch areagalnoftnlooselyuniledin fours (seeatso
Mensnlopedia.
no.99).Cels 3 15um ong.Ponds.lakesand
2 6 Scenedesnlus.
Flalco onies.i 2,4 or 8 e ongaredcells
arangedIn a row as shown,somospecieshavng sp nesat
the cornersof the co onies Cels 5-30Umlong.Cornmon
everywhere.
Two species
are llustrated.
2 7 Tetrastrun.4celledJIatcolof es arrangedin a dtarnoncl
as
shownin the figure.oftenornamented
w ih smaI spines
aroundthe margin.Ce s up to T0umacrossPonds.aks

2 a Dictyosphaeium.
Loosecoloniesoi !reen cellsin c .r
rnuclage.the .e ls connecledto a centralpo nt by branched
slrands(ohenbarelyv s b e) Ce ls !p to 10Bm.cross.
Ponds.akesand slow rivers.sometimes
veryabundant
2 9 Hydrodictyon.Net I ke coloniesoJ greence s. n r]vcrsano
canalsThe cels. which becomemultinucleaie,
maygrow up
to 10 mm long.and a nw net formsinsde each.Well grown
nelsare argeafd conspicuous.
TheJigureshowsa smal

(O.r,-,
G\ / i.";i

C-+f." t
-,-

a"i

.{ , -,

t)
.o1.,

a
ht^,^^h,,^^^^
v, ,,u, v|J, Iy usov
Greenron.motri.un cellularandf amntorsatq.e
3 0 Pleurccaccus
Greenpackelsof ce ls varycommonon trees
and fcnces.olten in associ.tron
wth fungathyphaeAlsoa
c o n s tl u e n lo f s o m oi c h e n sl h c c e s a r e l O 2 0 u ma c r o s s ,
andthe hol crossbLn' apperrance
is oftencrr.rdcrerrsI|c.
3 l TrebouxtaSph.rca)ce s 2 25urndianreler
grlwrog on
lrees Tences
et. .nc havng a tlar platelrkear cr'rtoroptast
w i t h a o b e de d ! t ei r i d . c - o I l f ap y r e n o dA c o n s t r u e n t o i
some chens Sornetims
drlfcu r ro dislin0ush ir.rma
sp.c es al Ch/arela(15) lhal rs alsocornmonon irces.but
he Chlorell.1hasa pat eralcI oroplasr.
32 Sttchococcus
A reducedf ameftousform.wrth cy ndrica
ce s 2 5u.n n d ameler.grow fq s ngly or . ,rrlechainsof
2 cf 3 .e ls gro\'r'
.! cn lrc?s.!!.ils. LJ|]rlers
rrC j o!\,erp3is.
ponds
as \/e Ias In
or puddes Vorycommorl
3 3 Batryac.)ccus.
Grows in coloniesup to 0.5 mm across,wth
numerous
!reonce s 5 10urnlongembeddedn an oily
matrx whrchvarcs in co our Iroma clearye ow to totaly
opaqueorafce or br ck red oranqeoilp gmenrdw th
ca.otnmaYbe scleezedf.om t !rndera.over sl p
P ankton01pondsand l3kes.otuenf o.t ng on tha water.
Somelimes
ab!ndant,formin! a thrckscum 33a.a co onyl
33b.partof thisflatrened
un.lera covers p ro show ce ls.
Mougeonaf amentous,
unbranched,
5 50um d ameter.
Cellscontarna srnge cliloropl.st,an axileI bbon runnng the
lenglho{ lhe cell.w lh pyrenods at intervals.
scef n rhe
!{iderv eh, rn lhe eft-handce and n tho narrowerai rhe
rght. common n srandng warer.
OedogantuniFilaments
unbrrnched.
3 50urndi;imerer.
Chloroplasl
a parietalnet,w rh severalpyrenoids.
The
thickenedwall at oneend ol somecells.r ds.1|ke dis
posab plasn.cupsone instdethe other,is character
stic
r f s t a . d i n qw a t e f .
l l h e ' c a p) C o m m o n
3 6 Zygnemalnbtan.led riuc lag nousI lamenisI0 50sm
d ameter,
eachcellw ih two star shapedchloropastswilh
cenrralpyrenoids.
Commonn sranding
walersZygaganum,
roundon damppeaiyso I. s similar,bu! haspurptesap.
3 1 Spitogyra. U rbrcn.hed mucrtaginousf itaments.varyingfrom
l0 to overl00trnrdiameterce with one or njoreoarela
ch o.opls1s
in rheformol sp raly wounCr bbons Commonin
standrng
water,especra
ly rn earlyspr/ng.

6
ii|
'l-",,:.-

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r,'di'

Fr 1t.
\".J

,_.--.,1,
,.a\Q/"

-::

\,{

Chlorophyceae
Greenfilamentous
algae

38

Uta|h't/ | ro"a1 ."o frld-npn 1-/0p1d

are ar.Fo |

6l

w th one chloropast (or 2 in drvidingce s) which {ormsan

bandroundthe ce las shown.Commonin
lncomplele
standingor runningwater,especaliyin spring.lf branched,
seeStiseactoniurn144) at Draparnat.taga).
3 9 Microsparc Urhrcnchedfilaments5 25um d amelr.Cells
(thou.Jh
zppearto havenumerouspErietachloroplasts
ths rs
nol lhe case),and aresomwhats m ar in structure
to
Tnbonena161).\1\\hH pleces(over:ppng hali cellw?lls.
i ls.f;aled1o( Trjbonema).bui arc ro 3t vely sho(er and
ihicker,and aaea moieopaquedarkergreen.ln runnin! or
' ' a r o . _ q\ ^ d r o 'T ' e u p p e ' r ^ o ^ l l ci 1 t l ' f i g L ' oe r . ' e e ' i n
opt cal secton, the lowertwo in surfaceview.
40 DraparnaldiaCe s resembe those of ,lalhrix wlIh a band
shapedch oropast.but the wlroleplanthasa featherylook.
w h h a c e n t r aa x i so f l a r g ec e l l sS, 0 p r no f s o a c r o s sn t h e
olderparts,bearingbranchedxrftsoi muchnarrowrcells
water,especa ly n the
at rnlervas. Standingand rLrnning
sprinq,formingconspLcuous
bf qht greentLiftsup to 5 cm
ong on sroneserc
4 1 Bulbochaete.
Smallp anlswith branched
Jilamenls
10-30um
d ameter.Cels havea nel ke ch oroplastresembing that ol
Oedoganium(35), and manybear onq hairswth bulbous
bases.Theygrow on other. gae,stones,woodwork,etc,
s t . n d i n go u t s t i f i l yU. s u . l l yn s l o w l y fo w l n g o r s t Lwl a t e r .
4 Ta . t w o c e l l s ; 4 1 bh, a bt s k e i c h .
42 Cladaphora.
Filaments
!p to 100um across,Lrsually
branched
cllswith reticLr
ate ch oroplastsPanlsoftenl.rgeard ro!gh
1(jthe toLrch.
freqLrently
covercdhatheprphytes.
Common.
usuallyaltached1ostrcks,stonesor orherhardsu{acc: in
strllor runnrng.,araier
s verylrouble.ome
lo pond owners.rs
rt raprdlygrows nto skciirsafd lanqlesseveralrnelresorq.
'blanket
a n d I s k n o w n t o t h e ma s
w e e d ' 4. 2 b .h a b i t s k e l c h .
Co(a n speces form furryba ls up to the slzeof tenns bals.
whrchrollaroundon the bottomof shalow lakesand poo s,
ond arerecorded
fromvarlouspartsof Br lain.
F amentous
algaeareoflnfoundwh ch havthe ce
.tta.rLne af Cladophorabut . re !nbrafchod Thesemay be
ong eithetto Cladopharaot Rhi2aclaniun,and dec d ng
vvhlchis oftend ificult.

39

il

l- hlnrnnhrrna:ro
sheetlikeor bag'likegrena gae
F amentoLrs.

1 3 Prasiala.
Cells1 20gm across.havng an ax le chloropastIn
rhe form of : o ete w rl_ra cenlrai pyte.a d. I ke Trcball\ta.
The planrma'r'be f amefrcus(43a).a r bbon seviil ce ls
into a sheel(43c.
wrde (43b.smaler scae). or expanded
glow
or subaeral.
ng on rocksIre_
natur.lsize) AqLratic
quentedby b rds,or ln olhcr habtatsrich nntrogef.
Stgeochniun. Cells ike rhoseal Ulothnx,\Nithbard shaped
pariet! rhloroplastsF amenlsbranched.
up to 20um across
or mor,but withouta stoutcntra.x s as hasthe r atod
y smallerand soflr
(no 0)- and considerab
Dtaparnatdra
(no.12)
conr.l]o1l
In slandng or ruin n.J
lrar Cla(lophota
w a l e rc, s p e c l a l yn s p rr q 4 4 a ,l w o c e l l s . b o ullo d v i d c
(w th t$roch oropastseach)i 44b,habt skelch.
Branched
filamenlsgrovvng fto woollylLrlls
4 5 CltaetaDl)ata.
x10).
fromwhiclr projectong colouressha rs
or balls(45b.
Ce ls Lrpto 20UmacrossCommonas af ep phyte01water
wtlrl
plants,or on strcksoTstones,somtmesencrusted
oi calc!m carbonte
crystals
.16 Entercnnrpha.
Plantbodylub! ar. ho ow (45b,c. raiLr3L
s ze).(rp101 crn w de and I 5.m or rnorelong.composedol
(46a).Some
cels wilh thrckwa ls and paretiilchloroplasts
on the surfaceoi
f oat n9 n masses
llmesveryconspicuous
slow riversand canals,or cntrnged wlth largcrvr'atcrplanls,
water.
and mny be abundanlrn brackish
ol lhe macroscopc plant bod as
4l Tetraspan.PL)rhata hacaLrse
ir forms(47b.si qhr y n nrged).bLrttheseareof muc age
1ype.havingpscudocLl!a
contalnlnqcellsof Chlanydorroras
(|ke mol onlessilage a) projcclng Iromthe mrrc allc (47a).
Palmodt.ttons s m ar.b|]t lofmsrctlculaie
le ly-masses.

Lnroropnvceae
Filamentous
and sheet ike greenalgaeand Desmids
Aphanochaete
Smallflamentousforms5-15snrin diameler,whrchgrow prostrate
upon olheralgae.Thecellshave
parietalchloroplasts.
and someof rhembeafhairswith bul
bousbases.48a,
two cels, one with hair;48b.habitsketch.
gtowing an Oedogonium.
Trentepohlia
Althoughbelongingto lhe greena gaethis
branched
f ameniousplanthascellsfiled wlth orangeoil. lt
is sLrbaer
al and growsor"rdanrprocks,formrngpatches
which look likeorangevelvet.Much commonerin northern
andwesternBntainthan in the south-east.
Cells7-20um

50 Coleochaete.Ifislotms disc-shapedencrustingplatesof
ce ls besetwith fine hairs.and growson stonesand water
p ants,reachlnga diameierol 1 mrn.\i.'hile
lhe cellsare1C
20Bmacross.i is oftenconspicuous
on the g assof
aquariaor the sLdes
of old sinksin which walerp antsare
grown.50a,deta s of cells;50b.partof a largep ant at a
lowermagnllicarioni
50c,a wholeyoungplant
D E S M I D S( a g . o ! p o f s p e . i a L i s egdl e e na l a : e J

5l

Hyalatheca.A rcptesentatlve
of the small numberof fila
mentousdesmidswhich arelound in boOgVpoolsetc.The
sur'
filamentsarecylindrical,
5-40um in diameter,0nd
foundedby a layerof muciage.
Desmidiumis a 3i.r|ilatgenus.but the filamentsusuallyhave
Lncross
a toothedoulirneand aremostiiequentlyI'lanetLrlar

52 Mesotaenium.A smal)cylindrlcaldesmid,8-30um diameter.

likeMaugeotiE.ltis padioularly
with a flat chloroplast
common n the je y I ke coverng of wet rocksdown which
w:rer trickles.
and rs usuailyaccompanied
by b ue green
aLgaeoi varlousspecies-Cyhndrocystis)s aralt et small
desmidwh ch is veryslmiarbul rhishastwo separate
stellatechloropasts.
5 3 Pleurctaeniuftt.Atad shapeddesmd up to 1 mm in length.
found in boggyplacesand upon wet iccksdown which
waterruns.The wsvy outlinenearthe centreof lhe cell ls

5l

Chlorophyceae
: Greenalgae
Desmids

54 Closteium.A ctescent-shaped
desmidlound commonly;n

55

56
5l
58
59

ponds,lakesend slow rivers,as we as in bogs.Someof the

specieshavelargeand conspicuous
cellsreachingnearly
1 mm in length,whrleothers.parti.ularly
the planktonlc
and
a
most
straight.
ones,may be much mores ender
CasnatiLln. El ipi.al ot angulllrin out ine. but without
spinesor orherprocesses.
A big and d ff colt genus,parilcu
larlycommonin boggyp aces.but a few socciesarefound
n water bodiesof a ltype$ l0 200ulofq.
Eachhalfcell is trianguar in end view,with
Staurastrum.
threecorners,
splncsor arms.Cejs varyup to 130umin
length,and arecommonin thc planktonof lakes.
Micrastetias.Cells\tety I at ard eaf- or plate llke. ova in
Up to
outline.with the edgesvarolrslycut of frssured.
A
'
i
d
d
b
350pnlonq
ooo.Jr
r ,11r.
Xanthidium.Cells atna-rlentedwith varioLrscombinationsof
sp res, but not trlaFgular
ir (rld v ew as Srarrrstrum.
long.
Found
in
10-2009m
acidrcor bogoypoolsetc.
Fraslrrm.Cllssomewhatilattcned,tr!t not to sucha degree
as t. l,4icrastetias,
ar.dhavlng angulzr obes.while the ends
areoflendeeplyrolched.Ce ls 10 200[m long.Acidc pools
A note on desmia|s
Onlya few to:erantmembersof thisgrouparefound in the
walersof the southand eastof Britain.Ihe
h6rdcalcareous
vasl majorltyareconfinedto districlsof acldjcrocksand soft
water.andwhile someof thesellve in the planktonof akes,
mostarefound in hoggypools.wherethereis oftenan
abundance
of speciesand ind viduals.A ratherold but still
uselulaccount,'.vith
manycolorredplaiesis West.W. &
5
West.G. S..A l\lonograph
of the ErrtishDesmidiaceae.
volurnesFay Society.London,1904-1923.

Xenfhnnhrrnaaa
Yellow-green
algae
6 0 Ophtocytiun.Cylindrical
or sausage-shaped
epiphyiicor fiee
i oal ng unicels. 3-2Cgmd ameter,each,"r,ith
two or more
palegreenchloropiasls
Th-.yvaryfromshortto very
elongared.
and areoitencurv,.dor evenlooselycoiled.In the
commonspecies
shownherethe Voungcellsattachthemselvesto the lip of the mothercellwall,whlch is hself
a|\ached ta a Cladaphora f a|iefi.
6 l Trib.)nena.FllafiettaLs and unbranched,5-20um diameler.
with severaparietalchloroplasts,and
H pieces,rsembling
Mrcrcspata(39). but diffringin the longorand nar.ower
ceilsand much p3ler.nd moretranspafenl
appearance.
havrr! no starch.Commonespecallyin grassypoos. 61apart
of a frlament;61b. H p ece ({ t logelherto formthe walls)
62 Batrydiutn.A coenocyric(m!hinucleate)algaformin0 dark
green!lobu s !p to 2 mm acrosson dryjngmud,ancliored
by a co ouressbranchedrhizoid.Not uncommon.
but only
lastsIn thisformfor a few days.perennation
beingby cysts.
6 2 a .a w h o l ep l a n t d u gu p . x 1 0 : 6 2 b .g r o u po f p a n t s o n
mud,seenfrom above,v 2.5

63

vaL t,4.

,
.oL) d
b,!1.r q.ea'
dn 6
ed

especiay n slagnanlor slowlyr!nningwater.Planicoenocytrc.ol eventhrckness

ihroughout(50-200um).regularly
branched,
afd wth no crosswalls NurneioLS
sma grean
chloroplasis.
63a.end of a f amenti63b,antheridunr
(malecell)and two oogonia(femalecells).

Chrysophyceae
GoLden-bro\,!n
algae
Achrononaslvlot e unrceL usualy oval,2 25sm long.wLth
1 or 2 brownchloroplasts
and I longand a short{lagelum.
Chrantuhna
s smlat but only has1 flagellumvisibe. L ke
_ 1 3.r o f ( r " l d " l l - o o . o r 1 , , ^ o r g o t . n o . , o r '
sl de. Farrlycommon.especially
rn spring,in puddles,ponds,

65 Mallanlanas.Like OcrroDDnas.bLrt.overed all over with

glassysc.lsof s ica,overl.ppinglka roofriles Somespecies
a so h.ve long s;|.a sp fes. rl one or b.rh ?ndsor ell over
(as illusrfaled).
Cells5 50um ofq Fartycornmon
Ln
puddles,
drlches,pondsnd lakes.especia
l'r'jn sp ng.

Chn,cnnhvnoao
continued
6ti D;nabryan BtaNn ce s I k.eachronanas. but eac!rllving rn
a clea.lor.!1(cot) Sol taryor fc.m ng bfarr rec cclcnres.
attachldor lre. s\rlimmrnolcDlrh of lo ca:lO 100lrr
Frequentin pondsand akes.especally in sprLng
67 .tyrLl/a.Scaly lrrown cells ltke Mallamanas.20 40um long.
connectedby theirtais into swrmm'ngcolor es up lc 500J]rn
a c r o s sC. o m m o n
r n p L r d d e sp .o n d s .: k e sa f d s o w r v e r s .
67:, s,/vmmrngcc on./;67b,s nqleceil,larqer
6 8 Uroglera.Iornrssw mm ng co oiies !p to 50r]umacross.
bLt thc smal .ells sit al tlreedgcof a ba I of 5o1tclearalmost
rnvisble Jnucirlle Thet.ils qo r !ht to the ccntre.but cirnnot
oflen be sccrr Com rof rn lakcs.poos etc.In sprng.68a,a
coloiy I 68t).:l ce s from rc cdqeI 68c.sil...wa ed cystor
p:od!ce
resilrgs\d0r M.n,, -efli:,c,i.l rhc airr!sotlryceae
iheseroundor ovalbolile.lrkccysts.

Diatomsor Bacillariophyceae
Brown alg.e wrth s ca sheils
l T h e s h e o f f r u n u i e i s l , k c , b o x . f D r m e do f 2 o l e f l a p p l r q
g a s s y p o n o n s a s n a F l r d s h o r a c l a t eb o r T h e s r d e! e \ , 1 '
o I t h e c e l i s t h c g r r d l ev i e w a n d t h e t o p o r b o l i o m v r e w t h e
v a l v e v e w ( s c e d r a g r a m .p . 7 ) l n t h e l a l t e rt h c . h a r a c t e f l s t r c
s c u l p t u rn c r. r f t h - "w a l c a n b e s e o n .e s p e c i . y n f r u s t u l e s
c e a n e d ' , t h . c d o r h e 6 t i r n d s p e c r a y n r o u n r e da s s n e e d e d
f . , r a e i r i r e d L d . n r i , c a t L o i \ , l e 1 i \ o d sr n i - L L n c1! .9 6 i )
6 9 M e b s n a . C f l t n r k c a c e l s J o n o d t o q t h e rI t ) p r o d u c ef l a , t h n u m e r o u sb r c w n c h o r o p l a s t s
m e f t s , 5 - 1 0 0 u m d r a m e t e rw
C o r n m o n n ( l t c h e s . p o n d s l a k e s .T h c s p - " c r e sr l L r s l r a t e d( i .
g i r d r ev l e w ) l r r s s m o c l h \ r a l l s . b ! t o i h e r s b c . r r o w s o f s p o l s .
a n o s c m e I r m c 5 . .s o s p n e s .
l a Cy.iotella ard Stephanodlscr/5-.Often ihese crnrol easrly be
t o d a p a n . b l l o n l y b y c i e l a e d s t u d y .T h e y . r c c y i n d r i c a l
d a t o n r s ,5 5 ( ) u m d i a m e t e r .o c c L r r r i n gs n g l y o T n p a i r sb l r t
n o t i n i o n g c h : n s O l t n t h o y h a v e a c r o w n o f v r y J i n el o n q
r a d r a t i n gb r s t o s f r o m a c h e n d . n o t s h o w n h e r e b e c a u s ei t l s
d ff cLlt io se. Corimon. usljaly plankioi.. n pco s. lakes.
a n d e q p e c L a l ls! i o \ / ' l l e r s . w i j o s e w a l e r s a r c o l l e i b r o w r
w r t h t h e n r n r p r n g a n c ie a r l y s u m m e r .7 0 a . b . v a l v e a f d
girdie v ws: 70c, cleaned \al,te ol a Cyclotellii.

Diatoms
continued

1 1 TabellariaA. dlatamlatmlng ilat zig-zag fitamenlsas jus-

12

14

15

76

trated,or elseradia colonslikerhoseofAstetionela\76)

The characterislic
seplaexiendparlway acrcssthe cetlsin
girdleview and show up as heavylnes. Lenglhof cells,Llp
to 100umor more.11a.pal al a zig zagchainof cells.he d
togetherby mucragepads,in girde view.The bro\ir'n
chloroplasts
haveonly beendrawnin the uppercet. 71b.
valveview of one of thesecclls.N,4orc
common n ihe less
calcareouswaterc o{ the forth and west.
D/arom.
Anotherdiatomwhich formsf laments,
straightor
zrg'zag.Cellsup to 70Umlong.wtthoutseprain girdleview,
un ikethe lastgenus-In va ve vicw (72a)ihey varyfrom
lrneario broady lanceolate,
but arerecognised
by their
rlreguar transverse
abs.Commonin waterbodresof a I
types.72a,valveview.c eanedfruslule;72b.girdleview of
livingf:ament.
Metidian.fhis has .el s llke Diatama (up to 100gm tong),
but wedge-shaped,
.nd iormscharacterist
c fan-shaped
co onies.Comrnon,
especlallyn sprlnq,rn ponds,brooksand
rivers.73a.
two cleanedfrustules.
glrde vicwj 73b.another
in va ve view; 73c,g rdlevlew ot |ving colony
SynedtaA,langnarrowdialom.not tormingcha ns.occurr ng in tha freestate(ol1enplankronc) or atiachedto a sub,
5 l r o t , r b . d p c do r m r r r, l dr - r . r o r ^ 1
rdo g.o o- n Ce c
"tir
up to 500umlong.Common.74a,valvcview of cleaned
frustue: 74b,liv ng co ony.girde view.
fbab a R- or Dl a.r'd'.In\ol\F\rc^.bL',. s(rpio
150gm long) form longf at f iitrnentous
colonies,
benthjcor
planktonic.
75a and 75b showfilamentsof two speciesof
vcry differentappearancc.
Conrmonin pon.isano raKes_
AsLerianella.
Formssrar-shaped
I oatlngco oniesof ce ls up
t o 1 0 0 9 ml o n g ,a n d s c o m m o n i n l a k c T
s h e r ei s a t s oa i o r m
af Tabelatia(71) which hasco oniss m .r in sizeandshape
b L Lr L o

. (e q cr- r^.o ra, do o. rl4

,. .di.

"t

-pi

nd by the knee-likeswelllfgsal lhe centreor eacnce

l2a

,7
EI

Ww

74a

tsa

ti
tt
E=

[J

14b
f3c

Ef
E]

\i

75b

Diatoms
1 1 Cacconeis.ExttemclycarnmonI at ova diatoms.10 30um
long,c ing ng to p anls,stonesand orhersubstrata,
some
lirnesIn an almosiconl nuousleyer 77a,c eancdlrustue;
77b. 3 ce ls on an Aedagontun)| a'r,efi.
78 l/e., /" l_^-o t.ddr"'oa ^lh^" , .p. 6 . ,rq
irom 5 tc 200umln enllh. creepfo .n mud etc . El iypes
oi viater-bod'i,,r;rous re aled0eneralAchnenthes
eic) arly
d si ngrishabieirom /Vavtcula
hy dela ed exemnalon. 78a
. eanedfrustue; 78b,|ving cellw th a ch oroplaston each
s de. Girde view paralel-sded
7 9 Ptnnularia Besembes a rrlc /Vaylcrlawith thlck bar 1ke
striaeand roundedcnds.20 4O0smlong On tlre m|ld ol
pofds,lakesandr'\,r)r:The lrqrIc shows! clernod1r!slule.
BO 6yros@ra Fecognrsed
l)\' lii b.irLrtirrsgmoidshape.sup
to 200urn ong..nd ve,ion llrc mrd .rr akes.pondsand
r i v e r sS e e a s c n o S 3 l l r ef ! L r r cs h o ! " /as c e a n e df r u s i u l e .
8 1 CymbellaShaped ke a Cornsh pasry,10 2009mlong.
commonlyattachedro plantsand othersubsfiataby muciage
sia ks.or iv.g severaltogelhern r.Lrcrlaqe
tubes.81a.
cleanedfrlsl.re; 31b. I vrngcell on sl: k of mucrLage
Ar.tphora ooks I te iwo Cylnbellas)a ned 10:affi 2n aral
a 2 Gomphonema.
Aso ca.rlmon.
usuallyaltachedby muc age
stalks,bul can a so creepabout ke the othcrd atomson
th s pageandthe next Shapcasymmetr
cal engthwise.
orrdlev ew wedqeshaped.and valvview varyng frorn
narrowlyova (nol l|ptica) to the shapeof an Elypt an
mumnr)'case.
I 10Oumlon0 82a.cloanediruslLrle;82b,
c,
rv nq attachedce ls.va vc and qrrde vicws.A d atomsimiar
ta GamphonenabU curvedrn g rdlevrewI ke a bananais

B 3 Nitzschia.Car,.r,an..r,anyspi?cies,5 !o moreihan 100um

long Bestd st ngL shedrn Lvcstite JromA/rvl.r/a?nd rts
e es by tfe t./rocir oroplsls
ar ihc efds ol tlrece . not the
s des Theres a so a brg s Emordspecres,
Lrpto 600ltm
long.but LrnrkeGflos/gr?a(S0) ( hasparalcl srdes,rnd
bluntends.83a,c eanedirlslule,83b,liv ng cel, both of a

19

78b

t,}.

f-l

::-!

82b
\-,9

Sr/irell.Largebenthrcdiatoms,valvview eJJpticalor oval,

girdlev w reclangular
or ,,vedgeshaped.15 200um ong.
like'w fg' Pofds,lakes
Edgeof va ve ottairlormsbaluslrade
and rvers 84a.va ve view; 84b.Oirdlev ew.
8 5 Cyntatopleula.FesembIngSr7,rel/aand ioLrndin s;milar
places.but cels nrlch 1a11er.
ike bisculs. and lackingrhe
'wing'
f "\locommon specres,one conslncleO1n
ornamental
girde view as shown,ihe 01h(-,r
cll plrca 30 150um ong.
f rvntnnhrina

ea

A smallgroupof flage ates,nrostlybrownto ohvegreen

l\c^rl'shapcd or oval celLs.10
8 6 Cryplolnooas.AsymmctricaL
two uneq!alflagela
sh chloroplasts,
80um ong,with bro\'vn
'tr
called chocysts. showing
and a gulletlinedw th slructrrres
up as rowsof spots Commonin water bodiesof all types.
l-linnnhrrnoao
usuallyarmoured
A smallgroupol llf!lellales.
Bto'tt..atfiarredand dravr'fout ntocharacterstc
Ceratturn.
T,ro f a!cllii.one L...jt!.i,n.l the other
hornsas sho,r'r'n
and rn d rlrooveup to 400umlof! s.met me:
rr?nsferse
common n lskesend pools
wth
h-"mct-rke.brownor colourless.
8 8 Pefidtniun Nm.aL|ed.
t w o i l a g e l l aI 5. T 0 u m . c r o s sF a i r y c o m m o nn l a k e s a n d
pools.recognisab
e bv lumpyshape
Frrnlonnnhrinoeo
A groupof green{lagcllales
'd9 tuglera-Spjndleshapedbody..a r bccomolatteror rhlnner,
ind redeyespot
wth one JlagelLrm.ljrenclrlDroplasls
long
25-100pm
In allwalerbodcs.especallysIghtlypol]Lrted
ones,son]etrmes
colo!r ng fartrrpondsdarkgreen.
9 0 Phacus.Alsahasgreenchloropl.sls.
brght redyespo1.and
f
Lrm.
attcned
ik
3
lelrf.with a pointed
singlefage
but r5
Lengih
Lrp
ln
sama
tail.
to 100um th.r
habit.tsas Euglena.
.Jt.i
fhe
n
chlonrpiasts.re
!sua y mask.dby
9 1 Trachelon)onas.
p
o
t
.
r
o
u
n
d
2
5
u
n
r
a
c r o s sn w h l c h r t
t h eb r o w n
oroval
rp to
lves,ihe f ngellumprolfuclra tl)r.ru!lr:r hole Commonn a!
w a r e rb o do s 9 1 . . a c c l i n r r sp o t i 9 l b m o r e h l t h y m a t N Insdc
i .j, pot openedr. sholaflagellata

R hndnnhrroaro
'Fed' a gae (oftenbrownoI blue grenin cololr, however.
e s p e c i ya n f i e s h w a t e r )
9 2 Parphyridiun Bright red unicels growlng at lhe foct ol'.(al s
wheTe$o ubl-"til rs coLlecl,
and rocksand in greenhouses,
dropsof b ood or
resembling
masses
{ormingmucilagino!s
tomatosauce.Occasona. Cellsareabout10um Lnd amelel
and havea stellatechloropasl.
9 3 Asterocytis(at Chraodacrt'lor) Formsshon filamenlsor
eachwith a bright
cushlonsof cellsabout10gm across,
sle atech oroplastand a centralpyrenoidOften
blue-green
ep phytic on other a gac, cspocia y Cladophora ard faliy
cornmonin hardwaterd strlcts.
Batacttaspermun.Highlv orq.niscd fl aments.form ng brown
branchng tufls (lp to severalcm long
or greenmucila!lnous
in
and springs,occasionally
on rocksand stonesn streanrs
consst of a cenlralaxis
!sLlaLlV
tarns.Branches
moLrntain
g ving a
usLrally
fromwh ch arisewhorlsof tinYbranches.
940. oxls\"vitlr\r\'lrorlsof small br3nches
beadedappearance.
ve
and two majorones(the'brrds'nesls'arreproduct
a.d a nrgn
at a rnaderate
bodes);94b nd c. srnalbranchos.
9 5 le,rarea.Anotherh thly org.nisediorm Lrplo 10 15.m
y
long.Plantsarethrckslrands.knobby and sparse
qreY
CommonlV
green.
sh
ot
brown
I
olive
du
branched.
formslargetuftson slonesin shaLowlasl r vers,speci'llyln
spring.

(or CyanoPhYceae)
Myxophyceae

9l

a qae (whichhrve no rendivdistinguishable

Blue-green
Relaledto bacteria
nucleior chloroplasts).
Chrcacaccus.Sph]ti.a or el ptical cel s occLrirng s nglv
rnore,dividng in 3 planesat
or in pairsor fours,occasionally
by stratiiied
r ght anges to eachotherand surroLJndd
b !-greenor brownlsh.Nol
Contentsgranular.
sheaths.
Ce s up to 50Fm
in bog pooLsand saltmarshes.
uncon'rmon
LyhaLfoaa qla(er th s slz
across,but LrsLra
Gloeacapsa.S fia\lat\a Chraocaccus,but cel s in gener:l
up 10 I unracross,ln grotrpsin w de straiifed
muchsmaller,
bilghtred lcrmLng
as shown,sometLmes
muc lagesheaihs,
masseson wet Tocks.

@6
,'->-.v.-=

wffi
92

l\i1r,vnnh,,no eo
Blue greenalgae
98 AphdnotheceSmal eion!lated
cells.3 8um ionq.embedded
looselvin lransparentslructureLess
mucrlage.mosiLyon vrei
rocksand n boggypoos A s milargenusbui w th round
s anoihergenuswhich
Synechacaccus
cels )sAphanDcapsa
(not in colone5).
hass nglece ls ke lhascol Aphanothece
Partof a colofy of Aprrrolhe., is shown.
99 Merismapedia.
Easilyrccognsedby the ro!nd cels, 3 10um
diameter.
d vidingofly in two planes.producingllat color es
Noi uncommonin
likerafts.a smal!one bclfg i Lstraled.
ponds,lakes.bogs,slow I vers.
n) . Smallcells up to 5gm
1OA GonphasphaerialC oelasphacrill
iloating
in d arneter.
unitedinto a ho low. roughV spherical.
and oltensur
colony,sometmcs blacksh in appeiranca
roundcdby muc age.Colonos reachabout1009ma.ross.
Consplcuousn th"-p .nkton of lakes
ce s op to 5um n d ametelembedded
101 MicrocystisSmaLl
denselyin mucllageto formrrre!!larco ofies.oftenplerced
wlth ho es. In bossand lakcs.sometnresplanktonc.
Larnprocystt.i,
ane ol lhe prrple slr phur bactefl:, has co on es
' \ e y ' l t c r o c y s rbsu. r i s p n k . . n d L V ersn p o n d sa n c d L t c h e s
,/,,ilhmuchdecayinsvegeialon.
1O2 Chanaestphon
Sma e ongaredcells!p 1o 5um drameter
aigaeeic.while
atlachedby one end 1olargerfilamenlDUs
fromthe otherend a chalnot sporess produced.
Common.
Thef gureshowsthreep anrsol d Jlerentagson a f lament
af Cladophora.
143 Asci atoria,Lyngbya.Phorn diun.Ihtee generadrf|cu t to
tell apart.evnby speciarsts.Cels un ted into unbranched
f aments,withoutsporesor olherspecalisedbodies,bLt
oftenwith a differently
shapedefd cell.Thc filamentscan
creepslo\\l) alone.Diamercrsvary Jrom1 um to 30 or rnore.
Sometimes
Jormrng
foundas s nglefr rmcnts,sometimes
densemats,oitendarkbluishgre.n.o ve or purp|shbrown
in colour,and with a characteristLc
smcll.Verycommonrn all
sortsof waterbodes.eitherp.nktofrc or benthic,alsoin
a r on wet rocksand soil.

qBg" o
,d ud wG
'egt

C,

\,t

'98

q*'.\1,
,q o"r

t \ / 1 ., . , ^ ^ t - , , ^ ^ ^ ^

r v ry U P i r y u v d v

by lheir
Planklonic
fi arnentous
alqaerecoqnisable
104 Anabaena.
beadedappearance.
havingthick
oftencur V, andsometimes
(speciallscd
cells)and sa!sago'
wal ed c earer'heterocysts
shapeddensesporesat inlerv:s. CellsLrpto 10sm across
Commonin the planktonof lakesand ponds.but sometms
in bogs.The frgur.sshow paftsof two I amentsat
occLrrring
d fferntnragni{ical
ons
a.Jgfegatcd
105 Nosrod Fl amentsI ke thosoot,4raraera.bL.rt
c osey togetherto iorrna co ony oJde{inireshapcwhi.h
may be greenor blacksh. Of llre bedsof rivers,on wcl
rocks,wet so and flowerp.)ls.cc s up to 9gm across,
iusidea
rolonies!p to severalceftlnr.rres1o5a.Jilamenrs
youngcolonyi105b,a co ony. nrturaisrzc.
I ke thoseol.4rir
106 Aphanizon)enan.
F aJn rl! i.,,rrrewhat
3ggrcgaled
barra, but lessbe!dcd,1 ijurn diafireler.
togetherlnro birnclesLp 1.r:jcveramm ofg which flo.t at
of pondsrfd .kes.somtmesabundaftly106!.
tho sLrrface
partsof 3 filamenlsshownq a spore(above)and a heterc
clst lbeio"\,t.1C6b,3 f oatrngcolony,x20
al
1Ol Gloeotlich!a.
Ce s in lapcrn( I amenlswllh a lrelefocyst
the thickend.F amonlsc uslere.llogclherby the b !nt ends
{ormng sphericaiurry ba s up lo severalml.nd arneter.
f I
lloalingat the surfacof pondsrnd akes 107:. severai
. a r to f t h c s cl.a r g e r , t h e r g hht a n do n cw l h ,
m e n t s 1j 0 7 b p
sporei107c.a floatingcolony.x20.
A note on waterbloams
Somoof the plafktonrcblue grcenalgaeat timesplod'rcc
of poolsand lakcsIn
vrylargeJloalinqmassesat the slrrfac
c, r. weather,partrcLriarly
rn autumnThesea.evryco.
ali favc
s.icLro!s.oflen ap,reirnfgrkcsp t gr0enpaL.ri.
beenknownfor anyyearsas walef b ooms.(Sce1re ar1c c
'Water
by A J. Brook.
Blao|.,s. I New Bnlogv. va 23.
1957)Genera iablero torm b oafis n. w)e Gomphaspha.)
na. Mictucystis.Asci/latoria,Anabacnd,Aphanizornenon,
Glaeotrichia. Ihe $een.o onial alga Sorryococcrsalso
formsbloomsEt times.

-:EiE<106b

@
crry,E:trElgG

Myxophyceae
Elue-green
algae
Tolypothrix.I6isfEmentous
form hasbranches
ol a characby
lt
type,
as
shown.
usually
marked
hetefocysls.
lerislic
plants.
cells
are
10um
among
olher
water
The
aboul
occurc
branch:108b,end
broad.108a,filamenlwth characteristic
a
filament.
of
Scytonemais sim:tlatIo Talypathrix,brlthe shealhsate
rnuchwiderand t growson wet rocksor soll surfaces
109 Fivula a.IhetaperincfiamentsareLrpto 12um In drrmeter,
al the basesol the
with heteroavsts
and aremuchbranched.
1o
lorm
These
are
uniled
tough hemfilamenls
branches.
mm
in
d
ameter,
especially
sphericacoloniesseveral
but alsooccuron stonesn mo!ntaingtreams,
conspicuous
poo
s.
109a,
colonieson a
on
reeds
stems
in
ring
and other
109c.
part
of
a
filament;
natural
size
109b.
branched
stone.
|
more
highly
magnif
ed.
filaments
Calorhrx hasfilamentslike Rivulatia,but is much less
branched,and the tjlamenlsoccur slngly or in tuits Iather
thancorones.
and usuallytorm
The frlamnls
branchirregularly.
I 10 Sr/gonema.
rocks,
Tha
cells
are
rounded,and
furry
masses
damp
dark
on
I e severaabreastin lhe o der pa(s, ils shown.Helerocysts
at the basesof branchesThe
but arenot regularly
scatte.cd.
varv
30um
diameter,
but of coursethe
flom
3
to
in
cells
parts
plant
wider
thanthis.110a,
of
the
are
very
much
o der
pad of who e planr,x 20j 11Ob,tip of a plantshowing
rows of cellssurrounded
by mucrlage.
rrregular
lAB

Notes

Notes

reading
Further
with the algaein !h s bookt yotr
Afler becomlngfaBrillar
may wanl lo learnmore.Thereis a largespecalisl Lteratufe
dealng wnh a gal ldentiicalion.Fotunatelyun ke manv
algaearernosty
groupsoi p anlsand animas, freshwater
Amencan
so that.lor examplc,
world w de in theirdistfibLtion,
and Germanilo.as will he found useful.
Fof the a most-beginner:
Prcscolt,G.W. How ta know the FreshwaerAlgae etawn
lowa,T954
Wesl. G. S. & Fritsch,F E. Bnttsh FreshwaterAlgae
1927
Cambridge,
For a generallntroduclion:
Round. F. E. The Biology of the Algae EdwardArnold'
London.1973
t'rYoafi clesg vc helpan collectlonand examl
Thefo o\^rlng
of the MalhamTarndrstrct
Lund.J W. G., 1S61.The aLllae
FieldStudies,1(3). B5-119 (l-lcrothe hinlson co cclion
appearaftefthe reierences.)
of fresh
examination
Lund.J. W. G.,1960.The m croscopical
and
Treatn)ent
for
Watet
watet-Praceedingsaf the Sacietv
(2). 109 144.
Exatuinatian.9
lor the seriousstudenli
lndispcnsable
George.E.A., 1976.A guideto a qal kevs(excludingsea
weeds) British PhycolagicalJ aurnal,11\1) 49-85

Inoex

E u g l e n a8 9

Gonphosr,haeria 100
G o n i u m1 2

Bara.hosperm!m94

C a l o l h r i1x 0 9

u othrix 38

zvqnema36

H E F I \ , 4 A J E S T YS
' ST A T I O N E B YO F F ] C E
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f FI IJW
B r a z e n n o sSei r e e t ,M a n c h e s l e[r4 6 0 8 A S
S o u r h e yH o ! s e ,W f e S r r e e l B
, r i s r oB S 12 B Q
2 5 8 B r o a dS t r e e i ,B ' m i n g h a m8 1 2 H E
80 ChichesterSlreer, Bellast BT1 4JY
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