''Gymnodinium'' is a genus of

dinoflagellate The Dinoflagellates (), also called Dinophytes, are a monophyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes constituting the phylum Dinoflagellata and are usually considered protists. Dinoflagellates are mostly marine plankton, but they are also commo ...

s, a type of marine and freshwater

plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms that drift in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphere, air) but are unable to actively propel themselves against ocean current, currents (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are ca ...

. It is one of the few naked dinoflagellates, or species lacking armor known as cellulosic plates. Since 2000, the species which had been considered to be part of ''Gymnodinium'' have been divided into several genera, based on the nature of the apical groove and partial LSU rDNA sequence data. '' Amphidinium'' was redefined later. Gymnodinium belong to red dinoflagellates that, in concentration, can cause red tides. The red tides produced by some ''Gymnodinium'', such as '' Gymnodinium catenatum'', are toxic and pose risks to marine and human life, including paralytic shellfish poisoning.

Segregate genera

*''Gymnodinium'' sensu stricto *'' Akashiwo'' *'' Amphidinium'' *'' Gyrodinium'' *'' Karenia'' *'' Karlodinium'' *'' Katodinium''

Former species

Torodinium ''Torodinium'' (ˌtɔɹoʊˈdɪniəm) is a genus of unarmored dinoflagellates and comprises two species, ''Torodinium robustum'' and the type species ''Torodinium teredo''.Kofoid, C.A. and Swezy, O. 1921: The free-living unarmored dinoflagellate ...

'' (with ''Torodinium robustum'' and the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

''Torodinium teredo'') were both formerly ''Gymnodinium teredo'' until 1921. Kofoid, C.A. and Swezy, O. 1921: The free-living unarmored dinoflagellate. University of California Press, Berkeley, California, USA

Segregate genera

Former species

References

Further reading