Lithophyllum kaiseri Heydrich 1897
Creators: name: Basso, Daniela
name: Caragnano, Annalisa
name: Gall, Line Le
name: Rodondi, Graziella
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2015
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Rhodophyta
Cryptonemiales
Corallinaceae
Lithophyllum
Lithophyllum kaiseri

description: Lithophyllum kaiseri (Heydrich) Heydrich (1897a: 412)   
Figures 4–5; Table 2  
 BASIONYM: Lithothamnion kaiseri Heydrich 1897b: 64, pl. III, figs 8, 12, 13.   
 LECTOTYPE: TRH, A20-1264 (Fig. 4), exclusively the small specimen in the box of the syntype of Heydrich no. 60, including thin section 6, is designated here as lectotype of Lithophyllum kaiseri (arrow on right in Fig. 4D). The larger specimen and the thin section 1150 are here excluded from the type material of Lithophyllum kaiseri. Details of the nomenclatural history are reported by Woelkerling 1993: 132; Woelkerling et al. 2005: 170.   
 ETYMOLOGY: the specific epithet is dedicated to the collector, Dr. A. Kaiser (Heydrich 1897b; Woelkerling 1993: 132; Woelkerling et al. 2005: 170).   
ILLUSTRATIONS OF TYPE MATERIAL: Printz 1929: pl. 65, fig. 2.  
TYPE LOCALITY: El Tor, Sinai Peninsula (Egypt), from corals.  
 MATERIAL EXAMINED: Red Sea: Sinai Peninsula, El Tor, syntype of Lithophyllum kaiseri (Heydrich) Heydrich (leg. Kaiser: TRH, A 20-1264).   
 GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION: L. kaiseri is distributed in the Red Sea. The occurrence of L. kaiseri outside this area is unknown.   
 HABIT AND VEGETATIVE STRUCTURE: The lectotype of L. kaiseri (A20-1264, here designated as the small specimen only, in the box of the syntype of Heydrich; arrow in Fig. 4D) is apparently a broken fragment of a larger plant, non-endophytic, with fruticose growth-form (Fig. 4D on right). The protuberances have a smooth surface, are cylindrical or slightly compressed, branched, up to about 8 mm long and about 2–5 mm wide. The tapering protuberances are often fused together (Fig. 4D on right). Plant structure pseudoparenchymatous (Fig. 5A–B). Basal or ventral layer (=hypothallium) dimerous, hypothallial cells 7–20 μm long and 10–15 μm in diameter. Peripheral region (= perithallium) composed of cell filaments curving outwards towards the thallus surface, L 5–30 μm long and 7–14 μm in diameter (Fig. 5B–D). Cells of adjacent filaments joined by secondary pit connections, cell fusions not observed (Fig. 5C–D). Palisade cells not observed. Single trichocytes 15–45 μm long and about 10–18 μm in diameter occurring in the perithallium and at the thallus surface (Fig. 5C–E). Single epithallial cells flattened, about 7–13 μm in diameter and 2–5 μm long (Fig. 5E–F; Tab. 2).   
REPRODUCTION: Uniporate tetrasporangial conceptacles flush with the surrounding thallus surface, conceptacle chamber 270–350 μm in diameter and 85–125 μm high, with a pore-canal 55 μm long (Fig 5G; Tab. 2). Floor of the conceptacle chamber 11 cells below the thallus surface, including the terminal epithallial cell. Roof filaments 4–5 cells long, including the terminal epithallial cell (Fig. 5G). Gametangial and carposporangial conceptacles unknown.  
REPRESENTATIVE SEQUENCE: KP696793 (LSU).
description: Published as part of Basso, Daniela, Caragnano, Annalisa, Gall, Line Le & Rodondi, Graziella, 2015, The genus Lithophyllum in the north-western Indian Ocean, with description of L. yemenense sp. nov., L. socotraense sp. nov., L. subplicatum comb. et stat. nov., and the resumed L. affine, L. kaiseri, and L. subreduncum (Rhodophyta, Corallinales), pp. 183-200 in Phytotaxa 208 (3) on pages 188-190, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.208.3.1, http://zenodo.org/record/13642519