Barbeyella minutissima

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Barbeyella minutissima
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Phylum: Amoebozoa
Class: Myxogastria
Order: Echinosteliales
Family: Clastodermataceae
Genus: Barbeyella
Meyl. (1914)
Species:
B. minutissima
Binomial name
Barbeyella minutissima
Meyl. (1914)

Barbeyella minutissima is a slime mould species of the order Echinosteliales, and the only species of the genus Barbeyella. First described in 1914 from the Jura mountains, its habitat is restricted to montane spruce and spruce-fir forests of the Northern Hemisphere, where it has been recorded from Asia, Europe, and North America. It typically colonises slimy, algae-covered logs that have lost their bark and have been partially to completely covered by liverworts. The sporangia are roughly spherical, up to 0.2 mm in diameter, and supported by a thin stalk up to 0.7 mm tall. After the spores have developed, the walls of the sporangia split open into lobes. The species is one of the smallest members of the Myxogastria and is considered rare.

Taxonomy and classification

The species was first described in 1914 by Charles Meylan on the basis of a collection made at an altitude of 1,400 metres (4,600 ft) from the Swiss Jura in September the year before. Meylan thought the species warranted a new genus based on the unique mode of dehiscence and the makeup of the capillitium. [1] The genus was named for the Swiss botanist William Barbey (1842–1914). [2] It and the genus Clastoderma together make up the family Clastodermataceae. [3] Studies of the ultrastructure of the sporocarps suggests that Barbeyella occupies a systematic position intermediate between Echinosteliales and the Stemonitales. [4]

Characteristics

a) sporangium b) through e) open sporangium b) from the side; c) and d) from above e) transparent peridium Rabenhorst Kryptogamen-Flora von Deutschland p.411.jpg
a) sporangium
b) through e) open sporangium
b) from the side; c) and d) from above
e) transparent peridium

The protoplasmodium, a microscopic, undifferentiated granular mass with a slime sheath, is transparent and colourless. A single sporangiophore (the fruiting structure) is produced from the semispherical protoplasmodium, which is approximately one and a half times the diameter of mature sporangia. It acquires dark spots as it matures and the centre of the protoplasm later becomes dark. Then, the transparent and milk-white protoplasmodium climbs along the stem to the top, where first the capillitium and peridium and finally the spores are produced. At room temperature, this process lasts roughly one day. [5]

The long-stemmed, blackish-brown or blackish-purple, barely translucent sporangia of Barbeyella are spherical, 0.15 to 0.2 mm in diameter and together with the stem measure 0.3 to 0.7 mm long. They are usually scattered on the substrate, but also often grouped in loose, [6] large colonies. [5] The hypothallus (the tissue upon which the sporangiophore rests) has a diameter of at least 0.7 mm. Although not visible on mosses, it has a reddish-brown color when growing on wood. The brownish-black stem is up to 0.1 mm thick, thinning to 5  μm towards the top [6] and is filled with protoplasmatic scrap material. The columella – arising from the stem tip – matures at the upper end at roughly half the height of the sporangiophore into 7 to 13 simple or occasionally bifurcated, 1 to 4 μm large, dark-brown capillitium strands. [6] Usually individual, occasionally in pairs, these are firmly fused with the lobed segments of the peridium, which are round in cross-section. When the spores mature, the sporangium splits and empties into the peridium towards the base. This prevents the lobes of the peridium from detaching and provides spore dispersal over a longer period, similar to a dehiscing capsule. [5] The sporangia are filled towards the top with plasmatic granules, which diminish increasingly towards the base. Depending on the size of the plasmatic granules, the sporangia appear papillate or smooth. [7]

The mass of spores is blackish brown, [6] or brown if viewed under polarised light. The surface texture ranges from almost smooth to warty, and the spores measure 7–9 μm in diameter. [7] Material collected from Oregon, however, varies from European material in several ways: the fruit body is brown; the branching of the capillitium from the columella differs (having primary and secondary branches instead of radiating branches from an expanded tip); the spore mass is tan, and individual spores measure 10–12 μm. [8]

Habitat and distribution

Barbeyella minutissima is considered rare. [9] Its habitat corresponds to the mountainous spruce-fir forests of the Northern Hemisphere. It is largely restricted to altitudes between 500 and 2,500 metres (1,600 and 8,200 ft), occasionally appearing as low as sea level and as high as 3,500 metres (11,500 ft). It has been found in Europe (Finland, Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Romania, [5] Latvia, [10] and Russia), [11] in west and east North America (Washington, Oregon, California, and Mexico; North and South Carolina and Virginia), in the Indian Himalayas as well as in Japan. [5] It is relatively common in fir forests on high-altitude Mexican volcanoes, suggesting that air-borne spore dispersal is effective. [12]

Ecology

The species grows only on slightly to heavily rotten and barkless deadwood in coniferous forests in cool, moist areas. The wood is about 40 to 100% overgrown with Marchantiophyta, especially of the genera Nowellia or Cephalozia . B. minutissima has been found growing on the liverwort Lepidozia reptans , [13] although Nowellia curvifolia is the main indicator for the slime mould. In addition to liverworts, Barbeyella is found socialised with monocellular algae. It is assumed that the protoplasmodium phagocytises either the algae or the bacteria on their surface. Other Myxogastria species are often found together with Barbeyella, especially Lepidoderma tigrinum , Lamproderma columbinum and Colloderma oculatum . [5] Aphanocladium album is a myxomyceticolous fungus (i.e., living on or within the fruit bodies of myxomycetes) that has been reported growing on specimens of B. minutissima collected from North Carolina. [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slime mold</span> Spore-forming organisms

Slime mold or slime mould is an informal name given to a polyphyletic assemblage of unrelated eukaryotic organisms in the Stramenopiles, Rhizaria, Discoba, Amoebozoa and Holomycota clades. Most are microscopic; those in the Myxogastria form larger plasmodial slime molds visible to the naked eye. The slime mold life cycle includes a free-living single-celled stage and the formation of spores. Spores are often produced in macroscopic multicellular or multinucleate fruiting bodies that may be formed through aggregation or fusion; aggregation is driven by chemical signals called acrasins. Slime molds contribute to the decomposition of dead vegetation; some are parasitic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eumycetozoa</span> Taxonomic group of slime molds

Eumycetozoa, or true slime molds, is a diverse group of protists that behave as slime molds and develop fruiting bodies, either as sorocarps or as sporocarps. It is a monophyletic group or clade within the phylum Amoebozoa that contains the myxogastrids, dictyostelids and protosporangiids.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myxogastria</span> Group of slime molds

Myxogastria/Myxogastrea or Myxomycetes (ICN) is a class of slime molds that contains 5 orders, 14 families, 62 genera, and 888 species. They are colloquially known as the plasmodial or acellular slime moulds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trichiales</span> Order of slime moulds

Trichiales is an order of slime moulds in the phylum Amoebozoa. Trichiales is one of five orders in the group Myxomycetes, or the true plasmodial slime molds. It is also currently categorized under the superorder Lucisporidia with its sister group, Liceales. The order was first described by Thomas MacBride in 1922, and has retained the same name and status as a defined order in present phylogeny. In the plasmodium form, members of Trichiales lack a columella but have a well-developed capillitium for spore dispersal. The shape and details of the capillitium are used to define families within the order. Spores are brightly coloured, ranging from clear, white and yellow to pink and red-brown tones. The order currently has 4 families, 14 genera and 174 species. Recent molecular research has shown that while Trichiales probably represents a true taxonomic group, its sister group Liceales is likely paraphyletic, and it has been suggested that several genera from the Liceales should be reclassified under Trichiales instead.

<i>Tubifera</i> Genus of slime moulds

Tubifera is a genus of slime moulds from the subclass Myxogastria. The genus comprises 12 species.

<i>Cribraria</i> Genus of slime moulds

Cribraria is a genus of slime molds from the group of Myxogastria. It comprises about 30 species, some of which are extremely difficult to distinguish.

<i>Ceratiomyxa</i> Genus of slime mould

Ceratiomyxa is a genus of plasmodial slime mould within the Eumycetozoa, first described by Pier Antonio Micheli. They are widely distributed and commonly found on decaying wood.

<i>Brefeldia maxima</i> Species of slime mould

Brefeldia maxima is a species of non-parasitic plasmodial slime mold, and a member of the class Myxomycetes. It is commonly known as the tapioca slime mold because of its peculiar pure white, tapioca pudding-like appearance. A common species with a worldwide distribution, particularly in North America and Europe. It is often found on bark after heavy rain or excessive watering. Their spores are produced on or in aerial sporangia and are spread by wind, however beetles of the family Latridiidae are also reported to disperse the spores. Bonner states that soil invertebrates and rain mainly disperse spores as they are sticky and unlikely to be carried by air currents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hypothallus</span>

In true slime molds (myxogastria), lichens, and in species of the family Clavicipitaceae, the hypothallus is the layer on which the fruit body sits, lying in contact with the substrate. The word is derived from the Ancient Greek root hypó ("under") and thallós.

<i>Trichia decipiens</i> Species of slime mould

Trichia decipiens is a worldwide widespread slime mould species from the order Trichiida.

Prototrichia metallica is a slime mould species from the order Trichiida and the only species from the genus Prototrichia. It is mainly distributed on mountains.

Physarum aeneum is a slime mould species from the order Physarida. It is one of a few slime moulds mainly common in the tropics and subtropics.

Listerella paradoxa is a slime mould species from the class Myxogastria and the only member of its genus as well as the family Listerelliidae. The species is so far only found on the wattle genus Cladonia, mostly in European temperate zones.

<i>Lindbladia tubulina</i> Species of slime mould

Lindbladia tubulina is a slime mould species from the order Liceida and the only member of its genus.

<i>Stemonitis axifera</i> Species of slime mold

Stemonitis axifera is a species of slime mold. It fruits in clusters on dead wood, and has distinctive tall reddish-brown sporangia, supported on slender stalks.

<i>Stemonitopsis</i> Genus of slime moulds

Stemonitopsis is a genus of slime molds in the family Amaurochaetaceae. First circumscribed by Norwegian botanist Elly Nannenga-Bremekamp in 1967 as a subgenus of Comatricha, she later elevated the grouping to generic status in 1975. The type species is Stemonitopsis hyperopta, which was originally described by Charles Meylan in 1919 as Stemonitis hyperopta.

Symphytocarpus is a genus of slime molds in the family Stemonitidaceae. As of June 2015, there are nine species in the genus.

<i>Hemitrichia</i> Genus of slime moulds

Hemitrichia is a genus of slime molds, of the family Trichiidae, found within the order Trichiida. It was first described by Josef Rostafinski in 1873 and remains a well-defined genus of the slime molds. Hemitrichia species exhibit either plasmodiocarp or sporangium fruiting bodies, both of which are well-known and recognizable slime molds seen on multiple continents. The genus includes Hemtrichia serpula, known as the pretzel slime mold, an iconic and widespread species that has been used to examine speciation in slime molds.

<i>Didymium</i> (slime mold) Genus of slime molds

Didymium is a genus of slime molds in the family Didymiaceae.

<i>Trichia crateriformis</i> Species of slime mould

Trichia crateriformis is a slime mold species in the order Trichiida found in temperate areas throughout the world.

References

  1. ↑ Meylan, Charles (1914). "Myxomycètes du Jura (suite)". Bulletin de la Société botanique de Genève (in French). 6 (2): 86–90.
  2. ↑ "Barbey, William (1842–1914)". JSTOR Plant Science. Retrieved 2012-08-19.
  3. ↑ Kirk PM, Cannon PF, Minter DW, Stalpers JA (2008). Dictionary of the Fungi (10th ed.). Wallingford, UK: CAB International. p. 760. ISBN   9780851998268.
  4. ↑ Schnittler, Martin; Stephenson, Stephen L.; Novozhilov, Yuri K. (2000). "Ultrastructure of Barbeyella minutissima (Myxomycetes)". Karstenia. 40 (1–2): 159–166. doi: 10.29203/ka.2000.367 . ISSN   0453-3402.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Schnittler, Martin; Stephenson, Steven L.; Novozhilov, Yuri K. (2000). "Ecology and world distribution of Barbeyella minutissima (Myxomycetes)". Mycological Research. 104 (12): 1518–1523. doi:10.1017/S0953756200002975.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Neubert, Hermann; Nowotny, Wolfgang; Baumann, Karlheinz; Marx, Heidi (1993). Die Myxomyceten: Deutschlands und des angrenzenden Alpenraumes unter besonderer Berücksichtigung Österreichs (in German). Vol. 1. K. Baumann Verlag. pp. 46–47. ISBN   3929822008.
  7. 1 2 Schinz, Hans (1920). "Die Pilze Deutschlands, Oesterreichs u. d. Schweiz mit Berücksichtigung der übrigen Lander Europas. Part 10". In L. Rabenhorst (ed.). Myxogasteres (Myxomycetes, Mycetozoa) (in German). Vol. 1. pp. 408–410.
  8. ↑ Curtis, Dwayne H. (1968). "Barbeyella minutissima, a new record for the western hemisphere". Mycologia. 60 (3): 708–710. doi:10.2307/3757440. JSTOR   3757440.
  9. ↑ Dykstra, Michael J.; Keller, Harold W. (2000). "Mycetozoa". In Bradbury, Phyllis Clarke (ed.). An Illustrated Guide to the Protozoa: Organisms Traditionally Referred to as Protozoa, or Newly Discovered Groups. Society of Protozoologists. p. 965. ISBN   9781891276231.
  10. ↑ Adamontye, Grazina (2006). "New findings of myxomycetes in Latvia". Botanica Lithuanica. 12 (1): 57–64. ISSN   1392-1665.
  11. ↑ Novozhilov, Yuri K.; Schnittler, Martin; Vlasenko, Anastasia V.; Fefelov, Konstatin A. (2010). "Myxomycete diversity of the Altay Mountains (southwestern Siberia, Russia)". Mycotaxon. 111: 91–94. doi: 10.5248/111.91 .
  12. ↑ Stephenson, Stephen L.; Schnittler, Martin; Novozhilov, Yuri K. (2009). "Myxomycete diversity and distribution from the fossil record to the present". In Foissner, W.; Hawksworth, David Leslie (eds.). Protist Diversity and Geographical Distribution. Springer. p. 59. ISBN   978-90-481-2800-6.
  13. ↑ Ing, Bruce (1994). "Tansley review No. 62. The phytosociology of Myxomycetes". New Phytologist. 126 (2): 175–201. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.1994.tb03937.x . JSTOR   2557941.
  14. ↑ Rogerson, Clark T.; Stephenson, Steven L. (1993). "Myxomyceticolous fungi". Mycologia. 85 (3): 456–69. doi:10.2307/3760706. JSTOR   3760706.
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