Prasiola stipitata is a small green alga of the family Praiolaceae. This species has been recorded in Iceland, the Faroe Islands, on the Atlantic coasts of North America and Europe as well as on the coasts of Australia and New Zealand. It inhabits cold temperature high-nutrient habitats.

Prasiola stipitata
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Clade: Viridiplantae
Division: Chlorophyta
Class: Trebouxiophyceae
Order: Prasiolales
Family: Prasiolaceae
Genus: Prasiola
Species:
P. stipitata
Binomial name
Prasiola stipitata
Suhr ex Jessen

Description

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This alga grows to no more than 1 centimeter long, is fan shaped with a distinct stipe. The vegetative frond is monostromatic. The cells in the blade are arranged in packets of 4 or more. In colour the fronds are dark green.[1][2]

Habitat

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P. stipitata thrives in high-nutrient habitats and is therefore often found in the spray water zone of shores frequented by sea birds.[3][4]

Distribution

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Rather erratic in its distribution.[5] Recorded mostly from cold-temperate regions on both hemispheres, e.g. Iceland, the Faroes, Atlantic coasts of North America and Europe, including Great Britain and Ireland, as well as from Australia and New Zealand.[2][6] This species has also been recorded at the Antipodes, Auckland and Campbell Islands.[7]

Reproduction

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Sexual and asexual plants have been recorded.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Bunker, F.StP.D., Maggs, C.A., Brodie, J.A., Bunker, A.R. 2017. Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland. Second Edition, Wild Nature Press, PlymouthISBN 978-0-9955673-3-7
  2. ^ a b c Burrows, E.M. 1991. Seaweeds of the British Isles Volume 2 Chlorophyta. Natural History Museum, London ISBN 0-565-00981-8
  3. ^ Lewis, J.R. 1964. The Ecology of Rocky Shores. The English Universities Press Ltd
  4. ^ Morton, O. 1994 Marine Algae of Northern Ireland. Ulster Museum, Belfast ISBN 0-900761-28-8
  5. ^ Morton, O. 2003. The marine macroalgae of County Donegal, Ireland. Bulletin of Irish biogeographical Society. No, 27 p 95
  6. ^ "Prasiola stipitata Suhr ex Jessen :: Algaebase". www.algaebase.org. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  7. ^ Cameron H. Hay; Nancy Adams; Murray Jury Parsons (1985). "The marine algae of the subantarctic islands of New Zealand". National Museum of New Zealand Miscellaneous Series. 11: 17. ISSN 0110-1447. Wikidata Q125163016.