Characiella | |
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Characiella rukwae | |
Scientific classification
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(unranked): | Viridiplantae |
Division: | Chlorophyta |
Class: | Chlorophyceae |
Order: | Sphaeropleales |
Family: | Characiaceae |
Genus: |
Characiella Schmidle |
Species: | C. rukwae
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Binomial name | |
Characiella rukwae Schmidle, 1902
[1]
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Characiella is a genus of green algae in the family Characiaceae, containing the single species Characiella rukwae. [1]
Characiella rukwae consists of colonies of cells embedded in a gelatinous matrix. Cells are ovoid in shape, with one nucleus at the base of the cell. There is one central, stellate chloroplast with a pyrenoid at the center. [1] The mode of reproduction is unknown, [1] although it is suspected to form zoospores with two flagella. [2]
Characiella rukwae has been recorded once from the plankton of Lake Rukwa in what is now Tanzania. [3] The genus is thus poorly known and requires modern reinvestigation. [1]