Desmid of the month
January 2003
Staurastrum brachiatum
S. brachiatum is a striking desmid species. Its characteristic cell shape is mainly determined by its prominent processes. Presumably as those processes somewhat remind of the joystick of a computer . our webmaster selected S. brachiatum as a symbol to navigate back to the homepage of our website!
Image: @ Henk Schulp
Image:
@ Henk Schulp
size
(L x B): ca. 30 x 30 µm
The species under discussion
is characteristic of an acidic, oligotrophic environment. Probably as
a result of atmospheric pollution, in the Netherlands S. brachiatum
has become a rare taxon in the course of the last decades, reason to place
it on the Red List of threatened species. Happily, in recent years it
is encountered more frequently again, possibly due to an improved quality
of precipitation.
Cells of S. brachiatum tend to stick to each other after cell division
so that couples or even chains may be formed (see also the website Gallery
of Desmids).