Tortitaenia bahusiensis. Notice chloroplast with a single, relatively broad, twisting ridge. Cell with two big, axial pyrenoids.

Cell dimensions (L x B): 28 x 10 µm

Another cell of Tortitaenia bahusiensis. Notice chloroplasts coloured reddish at the poles.


 

 

Desmid of the month
July 2017

Tortitaenia bahusiensis

Contrary to Tortitaenia obscura and the allied T. trabeculata the axial chloroplast of  T. bahusiensis is provided with but one or a very few twisted ridges and there are no more than two pyrenoids per cell. Cell outline in T. bahusiensis is about cylindric in the middle part, near the poles rather abruptly tapering to broadly rounded apices. Like in T. obscura, chloroplasts are often coloured slightly reddish at the poles. In the Netherlands, T. bahusiensis was encountered only a few times, in ephemeral rain puddles.

Cell of Tortitaenia bahusiensis showing a cylindric middle section and tapering ends.

Two daughter cells of T. bahusiensis