A SEM–study of Listerella paradoxa (Myxomycetes)

Apart from the presence of a capillitium, the fructifications of Listerella paradoxa Jahn resemble those of some species of Licea Schrad. Similarities exist in general appearance, mode of dehiscence, structure of peridium, and sculpturing of spores. The capillitium of Listerella is attached near the margins of the peridial lobes, and the moniliform threads are extensions from pillars from which the threads sometimes break. Aberrant capillitial outgrowths may be reminiscent of the processes bordering the peridial lobes in Licea. Although mostly found on podetia of the lichen genus Cladonia, Listerella may also occur on other substrates. A large–spored specimen developed on an oak leaf in California falls within the intraspecific variation of L. paradoxa. LwtereWa–resembling species of Licea may also occur on Cladonia. An x–ray analysis did not reveal any Ca or other elements with an atomic weight equal to or above that of Na in peridium, capillitium and spores of L. paradoxa , nor in peridium, peridial protuberances and spores of Licea pusilla Schrad.     

Morphology and ultrastructure of the plasmodiocarpous species Licea variabilis and L. retiformis (Myxomycetes)

Licea variabilis and L. retiformis are odd members of the genus Licea in so far as they form plasmodiocarpous fructifications and do not possess protoplasmodia. Differences between the two species are found in the sculpturing of the inner surface of the peridium, in the ornamentation of the spore wall, and in the internal structure of the spore wall. Certain characteristics indicate a closer affinity of L. retiformis to the sporangiate species of Licea than to L. variabilis. Spherical bodies attached to the inner surface of the peridium in L. retiformis appear to be an integral part of the peridium and may be homologous with ornamentations seen in L. biforis.     

Ultrastructure of Licea kleistobolus (Myxomycetes) and its bearing on the taxonomic affinity of the species

The peridium of Licea kleistobolus Martin consists of two distinct layers. Abundant refuse matter is evenly distributed on the surface of the fructification. The upper surface of the operculum is smooth and punctated by pores of variable size. The internal structure of the operculum is essentially the same as that of the peridium. Processes along the periphery of the lower surface of the operculum and along the upper edge of the sporangium function as an opening mechanism. The operculum bears hollow finger-like outgrowths and rounded warts, both being continuous with the inner wall of the operculum. The results of a SEM- and TEM-study indicate that the two different types of processes are homologous structures. Similarity between aberrant cap-illitial outgrowths along the margin of lobes in Listerella paradoxa Jahn and the processes bordering the sporangial edge and periphery of the operculum in L. kleistobolus , indicates affinity of the two species.     

Spore morphology of pteridophytes from China Ⅰ. Lygodiaceae

This paper is the first report of an investigation on the spore morphology of Chinese ferns. Spore morphology of 20 species (10 species from China and 10 species from other countries) in the genus Lygodium (Lygodiaceae) was investigated under scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The spores are tetrahedral-globose, trilete, rarely monolete. The surface ornamentation of the spores can be divided into four main types: In type I , the surface of spores is tuberculate or spheroid-tuberculate. Most of the species of the genus have this type of surface ornamentation of spores. In type II , the surface of spores is smooth. L. palmatum, L . subareolatum , L . yunnanense and L . volubile have this type of surface ornamentation of spores. In type III, both the distal and equatorial areas of spores are coarsely verrucate, while the proximal area is smooth. L. dimorphum, L. digitatum and L. kingii have this type of surface ornamentation of spores. In type IV, the surface of spores is coarsely reticulate. L. scandens and L. reticulatum have this type of surface ornamentation of spores. The surface contours of the reticulate type (type IV) are formed by the exospore, while that of the other types (types I, II, III) are formed by the perispore. The surface ornamentation of spores seems to be stable within species and thus is of important value in the taxonomy of the genus Lygodium.     

Licea eremophila, a new myxomycete from arid areas of South America

A new stipitate species of myxomycete of the genus Licea is described based on material from arid areas in Argentina and Chile. It was isolated from moist chamber cultures and found fruiting on field collections, usually on the same substrate, Puya sp. (Bromeliaceae). It differs from all described species in the genus in that it has stipitate sporocarps with dehiscence by defined preformed platelets and a smooth inner peridial surface. The new species has polyhedral, yellow spores with a uniform thick spore wall and dense warts except on irregularly dispersed raised bands with fewer warts, visible by SEM, an ornamentation not previously observed in the genus. Life-cycle events are described and illustrated, from germination to sporulation, based on moist chamber and agar cultures. The morphology of the myxomycete specimens was examined with scanning electron microscopy and light microscopy, and both light and SEM micrographs of relevant details are included.     

Spore ornamentation of Haplosporidium pickfordi Barrow, 1961 (Haplosporidia), a parasite of freshwater snails in Michigan, USA

Spore ornamentation is increasingly recognized as a key character for species differentiation and genus assignment in the phylum Haplosporidia. Unfortunately, spore ornamentation is known for only a small number of described species so it is difficult to assign most species to genera with any confidence. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy were used to determine the presence and morphology of spore ornamentation of Haplosporidium pickfordi collected from the digestive gland of the snail Physella parkeri in Douglas Lake, Michigan. Spores possess filaments that are derived from the spore wall and originate from two separate areas at the posterior end of the spore. When spores are first isolated from host tissue, filaments are fused into a sheet that wraps around the spore, passing under the opercular lid. These filaments gradually unravel when spores are held in water and after about 14 d most filaments project freely from the posterior end of the spore. The number of filaments could not be determined with certainty, but appears to be approximately nine. Filaments are 100 nm in diam. and up to 50 microm in length. The presence of spore wall-derived filaments confirms the placement of the parasite in the genus Haplosporidium.     

中国蕨类植物孢子形态的研究 Ⅰ. 海金沙科

此文是中国蕨类植物孢子形态研究的第一部分。首次利用扫描电镜对国产海金沙科Lygodiaceae 海金沙属Lygodium 10种植物的孢子形态进行了观察,并利用透射电镜对孢壁的结构进行了研究。此 外,还对采自国外的另外10种海金沙属植物的孢子进行了比较观察。海金沙属孢子为三裂缝,少数为单 裂缝,其表面纹饰可分为4种类型：①瘤状纹饰,海金沙属多数种类的孢子具此类型;②表面平滑,L. palmatum、L. subareolatum、L．yunnanense、L. volubile 等属此类型;③疣状纹饰,L. dimorphum、L．digita- tum、L. kingii等属此类型;④网穴状纹饰,L. scandens,L．reticulatum等属此类型。网状纹饰类型的孢子表面轮廓是由外壁形成,其余类型的孢子表面轮廓由周壁形成。此文还对海金沙属的孢子特征及其在分类上的意义进行了探讨。     

吉林省不同地区基物黏菌湿室培养的初步研究

对采自吉林省不同地区的基物进行了黏菌的湿室培养,共获得5目7科17属42种黏菌,其中柄罐无丝菌（Licea operculata）、钉形钙皮菌（Didymium davus）和长轴绒泡菌（Physarum puniceum）为吉林省新记录种。     

Two new species of Perichaena (Myxomycetes) from arid areas of Russia and Kazakhstan

Two new myxomycete species from dry steppe and desert communities of the Caspian Lowland (Russia) and central Kazakhstan are described and illustrated. They are placed tentatively within genus Perichaena, which does include species with a reduced capillitium and single-layered peridium. Both species were found repeatedly in moist chamber cultures; P. heterospinispora appeared on leaf litter and twigs, whereas P. polygonospora occurred on leaf litter and weathered dung of rodents. Both species have spore ornamentation that is unique for members of genera Licea and Perichaena. The spore ornamentation of the first species includes scattered large, pyramid-like spines 0.9-1.2 microm high that sometimes have enlarged ends. Among these spines the spore surface is covered by evenly and densely distributed warts that are visible only by SEM. The second species is characterized by angular spores with a coarse network of rounded ridges. The areas among these ridges bear scattered composite warts 0.3-0.5 microm high that sometimes coalesce to form clusters but more often are distributed evenly and densely and are visible only by SEM. The stability of the taxonomic characters of both species was confirmed by several collections from different regions obtained in 2 y. The morphology of the fructifications of the two myxomycetes was examined with both scanning electron and light microscopy, and micrographs of all relevant features are presented.     

A new species of the marattialean fern Scolecopteris (Zenker) Millay from the uppermost Permian of Guizhou Province, south-western China

Several isolated marattialean synangia and sporangia are reported from coal balls collected from Coal Seam No.1 (C605) in the uppermost Permian Wangjiazhai Formation in Guizhou Province, south-western China. The synangia are radially symmetrical with diameters between 0.8 and 1.2 mm and are 1.7 mm long, consisting of 3–4 elongate sporangia that are fused basally, free distally and possess a pointed apex. The outer-facing sporangial wall is 4–5 cells thick and conspicuously differentiated. Spores are trilete, have a granular ornamentation and are nearly round equatorially with a diameter of 55–60 µm. Comparisons with other anatomically preserved Palaeozoic marattialean synangia from the Euramerican and Cathaysian floras permit their assignment to the genus of Scolecopteris (Zenker) Millay. In this species the thick, outer-facing sporangial walls and large trilete spores are features consistent with those of the Oliveri Group within Scolecopteris , a group that has previously been considered primitive within this genus. Distinctions from all other previously recognized species within the Oliveri Group lead to the creation of a new species, S. guizhouensis sp. nov. This species is the youngest of the reported species of Scolecopteris recognized from the Euramerican and Cathaysian floras, and provides important evidence on the organization of marattialean ferns from the Upper Permian strata of south China.  © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 151 , 279–288.     

Taxonomy of Selaginella: a study of characters, techniques, and classification in the Hong Kong species

This study of 11 Hung Kong species of Selaginella indicates that sufficient characters exist by which they may be conveniently, consistently, and conclusively distinguished, and implies that the same is true for the rest of the genus, which suffers from chronic taxonomic confusion. Characters assessed are: leaf size, shape, epidermal cell patterns and mesophyll structure; ligule shape; patterns seen in stem transections; sporophyll shape; microsporangium shape; sporangial distribution; and spore surface ornamentation. Of these, the shape of median leaves, the maximum size of lateral leaves and epidermal cell patterns are the most significant and distinctive foliar features. These, together with spore surface ornamentation, are the most useful for distinguishing species. Correlations between the shapes of ligules, sporophylls, microsporangia, and vascular bundles indicate natural subgeneric groups.
These studies suggest that there are two ways by which taxonomic investigations of Selaginella can be improved. First leaves and spores should be prepared in permanent mountant (e.g. Hoyer's solution) for accurate observation of size, shape, and epidermal patterns. Secondly, data should be collected on a wide range of features.     

An electron microscopical study of the genus Tortula Hedw., with special reference to exine ornamentation

Abstract

Spores of ten North European species of the genus Tortula Hedw. were studied in the transmission electron microscope. In all the sporoderm was more or less covered with finely papillate processes of several different types which divide the genus into a number of groups different from the previously suggested sections. The ornamentation of leaves, peristomes, and spores of T. norvegica (Web. f.) Wahlenb. has been studied in the scanning electron microscope. The leaf papillae are not c-shaped as suggested in the literature, but branched in a rather complex way. The borders of the basal membrane cells of the peristome appeared to be a continuation of the filamentous portion of the teeth. A comparison with T. ruralis (Hedw.) Gaertn., Meyer & Scherb. revealed the ornamentation to be of the same basic type in the two species.     

Spore ornamentation of Haplosporidium nelsoni and Haplosporidium costale (Haplosporidia), and incongruence of molecular phylogeny and spore ornamentation in the Haplosporidia

Spore ornamentation of Haplosporidium nelsoni and Haplosporidium costale was determined by scanning electron microscopy. For H. nelsoni, the spore surface was covered with individual ribbons that were tightly bound together and occurred as a single sheet. In some spores, this layer was overlaid with a network of branching fibers, about 0.05 microm in diameter, which often was dislodged from the spore at the aboral pole. For H. costale, ornamentation consisted of a sparse network of branching fibers on the spore surface. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of the phylum Haplosporidia revealed that Urosporidium, Bonamia, and Minchinia were monophyletic but that Haplosporidium was paraphyletic. All species of Minchinia have ornamentation composed of epispore cytoplasm, supporting the monophyly of this genus. The presence of spores with a hinged operculum and spore wall-derived ornamentation in Bonamia perspora confounds the distinction between Bonamia and Haplosporidium. Species with ornamentation composed of outer spore wall material and attached to the spore wall do not form a monophyletic group in the molecular phylogenetic analysis. These results suggest that the widely accepted practice of assigning all species with spore wall-derived ornamentation to Haplospordium cannot be supported and that additional genera are needed in which to place some species presently assigned to Haplosporidium.     

SPORE MORPHOLOGY IN THE GENUS BRUCHIA SCHWAEGR. (MUSCI)

Scanning electron microscopy observations of the spores of Bruchia have resulted in the recognition of four spore types based on the ornamentation of the distal spore surface: warty or verrucate, pitted, reticulate, and spinose. The proximal surface of the spores of all species, except B. brevipes, is characterized by a central aperture region surrounded by a triangular murus or rows of spinae forming a triangle and 1 or 2 smooth or verrucate collars. The ornamentation patterns observed are considered to be characteristic for the genus. Spore morphology alone can rarely be used to distinguish species but in conjunction with certain other characteristics, it is an important taxonomic feature. Spore morphology is a major characteristic used to define the limits of the highly variable species B. flexuosa (spinose spores) and to distinguish it from the closely related species B. texana (reticulate spores). Variations in ornamentation patterns within the genus support the recognition of two subgenera (subgenus Bruchia and subgenus Sporledera). Spore morphology also supports the close relationship between Bruchia and Trematodon and is sufficient to eliminate several questionable taxa from the genus.     

Spore morphology of pteridophytes from China Ⅲ. Thelypteridaceae 1. Cyclosorus Link.

Spore morphology of 51 species of Cyclosorus in the Thelypteridaceae from China was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The spores are monolete, bilaterosymmetric, ellipsoidal in polar view, and kidney-shaped in equatorial view. On the basis of the variation in their surface ornamentation, the spores fall into three main types. Type I: The surface of spores is echinate or perforate with fimbriate wings. 19 species belong to this type. Type Ⅱ: The surface of spores is cristate. 11 species belong to this type. Type Ⅲ: The surface of spores is echinulate. 10 species belong to this type. The remaining 11 species have spores with mixed surface ornamentation of the above three types, which are considered as intermediate types. The results are valuable for a better understanding of the taxonomy and palynology of the genus Cyclosorus.     

中国蹄盖蕨属植物孢子形态的研究

利用扫描电子显微镜对我国产蹄盖蕨属44种植物的孢子进行了观察。结果表明,该属孢子形态为单裂缝,两侧对称,极面观为椭圆形,赤道面观为豆形。外壁表面光滑,由周壁形成表面纹装饰。根据周壁的结构和表面纹饰,可分为两种类型;一是周壁外层发达,形成粗大的脊状纹饰,有11种属此类型;二是周壁外层很薄或不完全发育,由周壁内层或中层形成表面纹饰,有33种属此类型纹饰。本文还就本属的孢子形态特征以及与本属的属下分类关系、本属与邻近属的关系等进行了讨论。     

中国产石韦属植物孢子形态特征及分类学意义

利用光镜和扫描电镜,对石韦属(Pyrrosia)19种植物的孢子纹饰进行了研究。结果表明:19种石韦属孢子都为黄色,形态均为肾形,两侧对称,单裂缝,说明该属植物是一个自然类群。表面纹饰类型有3种,即瘤状、瘤状—疣状和瘤状—网脊状。孢子表面纹饰特征性状稳定,在种间存在较大差异。该研究结果可以为形态近似种的分类提供参考依据,同时也为石韦属属下分类系统的建立提供了重要证据。     

中国蕨类植物孢子形态的研究XI.石杉科

利用扫描电镜对中国产石杉科2属22种植物孢子形态进行了观察,为石杉科分类和系统演化研究提供依据。结果显示:石杉科植物孢子为三裂缝,四面体形,辐射对称;极面观为钝三角形、圆三角形或近圆形;赤道面观为扇形或近椭圆形;石杉属孢子三边向内凹,马尾杉属孢子三边外凸;极轴长为16～26μm,赤道轴长为22～36μm;孢子具外壁,不具周壁,由外壁形成表面穴状纹饰的轮廓,穴为大小、深浅和密度不等的点状近圆形或不规则条状的凹陷。从孢子形态和纹饰类型看,石杉属和马尾杉属属间差异明显,属内差异不明显。     

Spore morphology and some other features of Goniomitrium Hook. & Wils. (Funariaceae)

Abstract

Goniomitrium enerve, G. acuminatum and G. africanum are distinguished mainly on costal features. There are some problems with the Australian species because of intergradation of characters but no name changes have been suggested and a key to species is provided. The spores of the three species, which are monolete and have a large reticulate ornamentation, are distinctive amongst moss spores and appear to be diagnostic for the genus.