Alexandrium minutum Halim

Hernández-Becerril, David U., Pichardo-Velarde, Jorge G., Alonso-Rodríguez, Rosalba, Maciel-Baltazar, Ebodio, Morquecho, Lourdes, Esqueda-Lara, Karina, Barón-Campis, Sofía A. & Quiroz-González, Nataly, 2023, Diversity and distribution of species of the planktonic dinoflagellate genus Alexandrium (Dinophyta) from the tropical and subtropical Mexican Pacific Ocean, Botanica Marina (Warsaw, Poland) 66 (6), pp. 539-557 : 545

3.1.6 Alexandrium minutum Halim ( Figures 25–27 )

References: Halim 1960, 101, figs I a-j; Balech 1989, 207, figs 1–26; Hallegraeff et al. 1991, 577, figs 2–9; Balech 1995, 24, pl. I, figs 1–50; Usup et al. 2002, 269, figs 4 A–D; Nguyen and Larsen 2004, 99, pl. 11, figs 1–6; Lim et al. 2007, 17, figs 3 A–K; Fabro et al. 2017, p. 1211, figs 1 A–H.

Solitary and small cells, oval to spherical in shape ( Figures 25 and 26 ). Epitheca rounded, slightly shorter than epitheca, Po non-prominent ( Figure 25 ). Cingulum wide and excavated, sulcus narrow ( Figure 25 ). First apical plate (1′) rhomboidal, in contact with Po, and with a small ventral pore on its right margin, 2′ larger than the other apical plates

( Figure 27 ). Po with a comma shape ( Figure 27 ).

Measurements: 22–26 μm L, 20–24 μm W (Table 1).

Toxicity: this species is toxic and associated to saxitoxin production ( Zingone et al. 2021).

Distribution: in the Gulf of Tehuantepec.

Figures

Figures 25–27: Alexandrium minutum, LM. (25) Empty cell in ventral view with the first apical plate (1′), ventral pore (arrow) and Po. (26) Outline of a cell. (27) Epitheca with plate tabulation and ventral pore (arrow).