''Lemanea'' is a genus of freshwater red algae, in the order Batrachospermales. 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.

Description

''Lemanea'' is a stiff bristle-like branched or unbranched alga similar to a coarse

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. 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.Guiry, M.D., John, D.M., Rindi, F. and McCarthy, T.K. (Edited) 2007. ''New Survey of Clare Island. Volume 6: The Freshwater and Terrestrial Algae.'' Royal Irish Academy.

Species

World-wide nine species are listed in algaebase:

* '' Lemanea borealis'' Atkinson * '' Lemanea ciliata'' (Sirodot) De Toni * '' Lemanea condensata'' Israelson * '' Lemanea fluviatilis'' (Linnaeus) C. Agardh * '' Lemanea fucina'' Bory de Saint-Vincent ** ''Lemanea fucina'' var. ''parva'' M.L.Vis & R.G. Sheath * '' Lemanea mamillosa'' Kützing * '' Lemanra rigida'' (Sirodot) De toni * '' Laminea sinca'' C.C. Jac * '' Lemanea sudeica'' Kützing

Taxonomy

The genus name of ''Lemanea'' is in honour of Dominique Sébastien Léman (1781-1829), who was an Italian-French botanist (interested in

Pteridology A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except th ...

, Algology and Mycology) and also Mineralogy. The genus was

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by Jean Baptiste Bory de St. Vincent in Ann. Mus. Hist. Nat. (Paris) vol.12 on page 178 in 1808.

Distribution

The genus is considered to be cosmopolitan in the northern hemisphere.

Europe

United Kingdom

There are two species in the British Isles:- * '' Lemanea fluviatilis'' (L.) C.Ag. * '' Lemanea fucina'' Bory

Ireland

The records of this genus in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

are few with only three historic records from the north of Ireland in the

Ulster Museum The Ulster Museum, located in the Botanic Gardens in Belfast, has around 8,000 square metres (90,000 sq. ft.) of public display space, featuring material from the collections of fine art and applied art, archaeology, ethnography, treasure ...

Herbarium (BEL). One collected by William 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 near Dungiven, Co. Londonderry is also preserved. A further 16 specimens were collected recently, that is within the last 50 years and have been added to the collection - all from

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. They have also one foreign specimen collected from the

Faroes The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway betw ...

. A ''Lemanea'' species was found on slabs in the rapidly flowing streams in the NW of the Island of

Mull Mull may refer to: Places *Isle of Mull, a Scottish island in the Inner Hebrides ** Sound of Mull, between the Isle of Mull and the rest of Scotland * Mount Mull, Antarctica *Mull Hill, Isle of Man * Mull, Arkansas, a place along Arkansas Highway ...

.Hibberd, D.J. in ''The Island of Mull a survey of its flora and environment.'' Ed A.C. Jermy and J.A. Crabbe. British Museum (Natural History) London. 1978 In 2007, ''Lemanea fucina'' has been reported from Clare Island.

North America

In North America two species in this genus are listed.Vis, M,L, and Sheath, R.G. 1992. Systematics of the freshwater red algael family Lemaneaceae in North America. ''Phycologia.'' 31: 164 - 179 * '' Lemanea borealis'' Atkinson * '' Lemanea fluviatilis'' (Linnaeus) C.Agardh ** ''Lemanea fucina'' var. ''parva'' M.L. Vis & R.G. Sheath

References

General references

* John, D.M., Whitton, B.A. and Brook, A.J. (Ed.) 2002. ''The Freshwater Algal Flora of the British Isles.'' Cambridge University Press. * Morton, O. 1978. ''Lemanea'' in the north of Ireland. ''Irish Naturalists' Journal'' 19: 205. * Sawers, W. 1854. List of algae gathered in the north of Ireland. ''Naturalist, Morris'' 4: 254 - 257. * West, G.S. and Fritsch, F.E. 1927. ''A Treatise on the British Freshwater Algae.'' Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. acsimile edition printed in 1968 as Vol. 3 of Bibliotheca Phycologia. J.Cramer, Lehre.

External links

algaebase.org
{{Taxonbar, from=Q290961 Batrachospermales Red algae genera