image_list image_listE

Chlorophyceae: Chlorococcales: Micractiniaceae

 Micractinium pusillum
Fresenius var. pusillum

Micractinium Genus: Colonial; cell body with 2 or more spiny hairs (Illustrations of The Japanese Fresh-water Algae, 1977).
Species: Tetrahedral colonies of 4 or 8 cells; cell body spherical 3-7 (-12) μm in diam., with 1-5 spiny projections 20-35 (-60) μm long; a sngle chloroplast parietal, plate-like, with a pyrenoid (Photomicrographs of the Freshwater Algae, vol. 2, 1984).
QuickTime
Movies
http://protist.i.hosei.ac.jp/
Similar genus --> Golenkinia; Franceia; Acanthosphaera;

Micractinium pusillum Fresenius var. pusillum, a colony of 8 cells, cell body 9-11 μm diam. with several needles up to 38-44 μm long, x 400, Japan, 1997 by Y. Tsukii
scale 50 μm scale 100 μm scale 150 μm; x 400
Micractinium

Micractinium pussillum Fresenius var. elegans G. M. Smith: a colony of 4-32 spherical cells, cell body 3-5 μm diam., with 2-3 needle-like projections 20-30 μm long, a single cup-shaped chloroplast with a pyrenoid (Illustrations of The Japanese Fresh-water Algae, 1977).

Please click on images for viewing enlarged.
Copyright Protist Information Server