Home / Chlorophyceae / Unicells / Flagellated / Chlainomonas
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Name derivation:
‘Cloaked flagellate’ – Chlamy- cloak or mantle; -monas flagellate (Gr.)
Classification:
Chlainomonas H.R.Christen 1959; 3 of 3 species descriptions are currently accepted taxonomically (Guiry 2012). Order Chlamydomonadales; Family Chlamydomonadaceae
Morphology:
Elliptical unicel with four flagella inserted at apex. Cell membrane is separated from the wall by a hyaline layer. Chloroplast usually cup-shaped. Some species have a stigma. No sexual stages are reported. Asexual reproduction produces four motile zoospores. Aplanospore and akinete stages are known. Chainomonas rubra develops a bright red color on snow.
Similar genera:
Chlamydomonas and Chloromonas are morphologically similar.
Habitat:
Snow; reported from western USA (Washington) and western Canada (British Columbia), Australia and New Zealand (Novis et al. 2008)
References:
Christen, H.R. 1959. Flagellaten aus dem Schützenweiher bei Veltheim. Mitteilungen der naturwissenschaftlichen gesellschaft in Winterthur 29: 167-189. Guiry, M.D. and G.M. Guiry 2012. AlgaeBase. World-wide electronic publication, National University of Ireland, Galway. http://www.algaebase.org; searched on 22 December 2012. Novis, P.M., R.W. Hoham, T. Beer and M. Dawson 2008. Two snow species of the quadriflagellate green alga Chlainomonas (Chlorophyta, Volvocales): ultrastructure and phylogenetic position within the chloromonas clade. Journal of Phycology 44: 1001-1012.