''Bracteamorpha'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

green algae The green algae (: green alga) are a group of chlorophyll-containing autotrophic eukaryotes consisting of the phylum Prasinodermophyta and its unnamed sister group that contains the Chlorophyta and Charophyta/ Streptophyta. The land plants ...

in the order

Sphaeropleales Sphaeropleales is an order of green algae that used to be called Chlorococcales. The order includes some of the most common freshwater plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms that drift in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphe ...

, and is the only genus in the family Bracteamorphaceae. It contains a single species, ''Bracteamorpha trainorii''. ''Bracteamorpha'' is a terrestrial alga that inhabits soils. It was first discovered in a

biological soil crust Biological soil crusts, often abbreviated as biocrusts, are communities of living organisms inhabiting the surface of soils in arid and semi-arid ecosystems, which form stable aggregates of soil particles in a thin layer millimeters to centimeters ...

from a desert in

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

, USA.

Description

''Bracteamorpha trainorii'' consists of solitary cells that are roughly spherical to ovoid, up to 24 μm long. When young, the cells have a single parietal lobed

chloroplast A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle, organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant cell, plant and algae, algal cells. Chloroplasts have a high concentration of chlorophyll pigments which captur ...

; at maturity, cells have many small chloroplasts, both lining the outer wall (i.e. parietal) and deeper within the cell. Chloroplasts lack sheathed

pyrenoid Pyrenoids are sub-cellular phase-separated micro-compartments found in chloroplasts of many algae,Giordano, M., Beardall, J., & Raven, J. A. (2005). CO2 concentrating mechanisms in algae: mechanisms, environmental modulation, and evolution. ''An ...

s. Mature cells are multinucleate; that is, they have multiple nuclei. Old cells may be orange in color due to the presence of

carotenoid Carotenoids () are yellow, orange, and red organic pigments that are produced by plants and algae, as well as several bacteria, archaea, and fungi. Carotenoids give the characteristic color to pumpkins, carrots, parsnips, corn, tomatoes, cana ...

pigments. ''Bracteamorpha'' reproduces asexually and sexually. Asexual reproduction occurs by the formation of

autospore Autospores are a type of spores that are produced by algae to enable asexual reproduction and spread. They are non-motile and non-Flagellated cell, flagellated Aplanospore, aplanospores that are generated within a parent cell and have the same sha ...

s, or

zoospore A zoospore is a motile asexual spore that uses a flagellum for locomotion in aqueous or moist environments. Also called a swarm spore, these spores are created by some protists, bacteria, and fungi to propagate themselves. Certain zoospores are ...

s. In autospore formation, 4 to 16 daughter cells are produced per mother cell. Zoospores have two

flagella A flagellum (; : flagella) (Latin for 'whip' or 'scourge') is a hair-like appendage that protrudes from certain plant and animal sperm cells, from fungal spores ( zoospores), and from a wide range of microorganisms to provide motility. Many pr ...

of slightly unequal length and an inconspicuous stigma. In sexual reproduction, the gametes are

isogamous Isogamy is a form of sexual reproduction that involves gametes of the same morphology (indistinguishable in shape and size), and is found in most unicellular eukaryotes. Because both gametes look alike, they generally cannot be classified as ma ...

and are similar in morphology to the zoospores.

References

Sphaeropleales genera Sphaeropleales Monotypic algae genera {{Chlorophyceae-stub