| Lemanea | |
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| Lemanea sp. in Polish mountain stream | |
Scientific classification | |
| Clade: | Archaeplastida |
| Division: | Rhodophyta |
| Class: | Florideophyceae |
| Order: | Batrachospermales |
| Family: | Lemaneaceae |
| Genus: | Lemanea Sirodot, nonBory |
Lemanea is a genus of freshwaterred algae, in the orderBatrachospermales. Both species are considered to be widespread in the northern hemisphere. Although placed in the Rhodophyta (red algae) it in fact is green in colour.
Lemanea is a stiff bristle-like branched or unbranched alga similar to a coarsehorsehair. Close inspection show it to have small swellings at more or less regular intervals along its length. It grows to 40 cm in length, in bunches in freshwater. It is blue-green to olive in colour when young. The asexual stage is a row of single-celled branched filaments.[1]
World-wide nine species are listed in algaebase:-[1]
The genus name ofLemanea is in honour of Dominique Sébastien Léman (1781-1829), who was an Italian-French botanist (interested inPteridology, Algology and Mycology) and alsoMineralogy.[2]
The genus wascircumscribed by Jean Baptiste Bory de St. Vincent in Ann. Mus. Hist. Nat. (Paris) vol.12 on page 178 in 1808.
The genus is considered to be cosmopolitan in the northern hemisphere.
There are two species in the British Isles:-
The records of this genus inIreland are few with only three historic records from the north of Ireland in theUlster MuseumHerbarium (BEL). One collected byWilliam Thompson in 1839; one collected by W. Sawers in 1856 and one collected in 1884 by H.W.Lett. These seem to be the earliest records from the north of Ireland. A more recent specimen collected in 1959 by Miss M.P.H. Kertland nearDungiven,Co. Londonderry is also preserved.[3] A further 16 specimens were collected recently, that is within the last 50 years and have been added to the collection - all fromNorthern Ireland. They have also one foreign specimen collected from theFaroes.ALemanea species was found on slabs in the rapidly flowing streams in the NW of the Island ofMull.[4]In 2007,Lemanea fucina has been reported from Clare Island.[1]
InNorth America two species in this genus are listed.[5]
Authority control databases: National |
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