Nitella silicea Casanova & Karol, 2023

Casanova, Michelle T. & Karol, Kenneth G., 2023, Charophytes of Australia’s Northern Territory - II. Tribe Nitelleae, Australian Systematic Botany 36 (4), pp. 322-353 : 345-348

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.1071/SB22029

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.11148862

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/A70387E4-943E-2759-7D2D-2ADF49BFFC2F

treatment provided by

Felipe

scientific name

Nitella silicea Casanova & Karol
status

sp. nov.

Nitella silicea Casanova & Karol , sp. nov.

Type: Woodford Lagoon, in 0.35 m of water, 3 Sep. 2010. M. T.Casanova & J.Schult r741 (holo: DNA!; iso MEL!, NY!) .

Dioecious. Plants occurring as isolated, elongate plants with flabellate whorls; up to 4×furcate ( Fig. 14 a View Fig ). Axes up to 450 µm wide; internodes up to 100 mm long. Fertile branchlets 6 in a whorl, similar to the sterile branchlets but somewhat smaller ( Fig. 14 c View Fig ); primary segments up to 10 mm long; secondary segments 6 or 7, up to 11 mm long; tertiary segments 3–5, up to 11 mm long; quaternary segments (usually dactyls) 2 or 3, up to 1 mm long, rarely further divided, 2 dactyls up to 0.5 mm long; sterile branchlets 6 in a whorl; up to 30 mm long; hardly distinguished from fertile branchlets ( Fig. 14 b View Fig ). Fertile dactyls 2 or 3; bicellulate, the end-cell shortly conical and acute, confluent with the end of the penultimate cell; dactyls of variable lengths, up to 1 mm long ( Fig. 14 d View Fig ). Sterile dactyls similar to fertile; however, where there are fewer furcations the dactyls can be up to 3 mm long. Heads not formed, the upper whorls not much contracted. Gametangia on separate plants, antheridia single and central at the final 2 furcations. Oosporangia geminate or single, lateral to the upper-most fertile branchlet nodes ( Fig. 14 d View Fig ). Oosporangia up to 400 µm long × 350 µm wide with 8 helical stripes; coronula up to 35 µm high, the upper cells longer than the lower cells ( Fig. 14 e View Fig ). Oospores 290–300 µm long × 270–290 µm wide with 7 or 8 smooth striae ( Fig. 14 f View Fig ); the ornamentation consists of closely packed, rounded verrucae, similar to cobblestones (silice) ( Fig. 14 g View Fig ). Antheridia up to 250 µm in diameter. Chromosome numbers not known.

Taxonomic notes

These specimens would have been distinguished as Nitella furcata or N. mucronata (A.Braun) Miq. by Wood (1971) because of the short dactyls; however, Wood’s concept of those species was an amalgamation of morphologically similar monoecious (and ‘submonoecious’, in the case of N. flagelliformis A.Braun ) species, including N. tumulosa Zaneveld , N. oligospira A.Braun , N. inversa Imahori , N. japonica T.F.Allen , N. axillaris A.Braun , N. axilliformis Imahori and N. orientalis , all of which are now recognised as distinct species ( Sakayama et al. 2004, 2005; Sakayama 2008). Wood (1971) found that the herbarium specimens that he called N. furcata in Australia were almost invariably sterile or poor material. Nitella silicea is dioecious rather than monoecious, and appears to be restricted to the Northern Territory around Darwin. Other dioecious species in this group have different oospores (e.g. N. duthieae J.Groves & E.L.Stephens ).

Recognition

Nitella silicea is distinguished by its very short dactyls (terminal branchlet segments), gametangia at the distalmost furcations, a lack of mucus and distinctive oospores.

Distribution

Nitella silicea grows in shallow lagoons at the end of the wet season around Darwin, possibly more widespread, fertile in September.

Etymology

Named for the ornamentation on the oospore wall, which resembles cobblestones (for which one translation is silice in Latin).

Specimens examined

NORTHERN TERRITORY: Lyons Lagoon , 3 Sep. 2010, M. T. Casanova & J . Schult r747 ( MEL), r749 ( MEL) .

M

Botanische Staatssammlung München

T

Tavera, Department of Geology and Geophysics

J

University of the Witwatersrand

MEL

Museo Entomologico de Leon

NY

William and Lynda Steere Herbarium of the New York Botanical Garden

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Charophyta

Class

Charophyceae

Order

Charales

Family

Characeae

Genus

Nitella

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