''Nitella flexilis'', the smooth stonewort,
is a freshwater species of
characean algae that is used as a
model organism for its large
cell
Cell most often refers to:
* Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life
Cell may also refer to:
Locations
* Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery ...
size and relative ease of
cultivation in the laboratory.
Description
A robust
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
growing up to a meter long with axes up to 1mm wide. Branches in whorls once or twice divided.
Distribution
The species occurs on all continents of the world except
Australia.
It has been recorded from several counties 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 ...
. From the Eglinton Canal in
Galway
Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city on ...
; and in Counties
Down and
Londonderry; River Dorree in Clare Island Co. Mayo 2004.
[''Ed''. Guiry, M.D., John, D.M., Rindi, F. and McCarthy, T.K. 2007. New Survey of Clare Island. Volume 6: The Freshwater and Terrestrial Algae. Royal Irish Academy. ]
References
Charophyta
{{Chlorophyceae-stub