The dinoflagellates are a monophyletic group of single-celled eukaryotes constituting the phylum Dinoflagellata and are usually considered protists. Dinoflagellates are mostly marine plankton, but they also are common in freshwater habitats. Their populations vary with sea surface temperature, salinity, and depth. Many dinoflagellates are photosynthetic, but a large fraction of these are in fact mixotrophic, combining photosynthesis with ingestion of prey.
Karenia brevis is a microscopic, single-celled, photosynthetic organism in the genus Karenia. It is a marine dinoflagellate commonly found in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. It is the organism responsible for the "Florida red tides" that affect the Gulf coasts of Florida and Texas in the U.S., and nearby coasts of Mexico. K. brevis has been known to travel great lengths around the Florida peninsula and as far north as the Carolinas.
Alexandrium fundyense is a species of dinoflagellates. It produces toxins that induce paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), and is a common cause of red tide. A. fundyense regularly forms massive blooms along the northeastern coasts of the United States and Canada, resulting in enormous economic losses and public health concerns.
A harmful algal bloom (HAB), or excessive algae growth, is an algal bloom that causes negative impacts to other organisms by production of natural algae-produced toxins, mechanical damage to other organisms, or by other means. HABs are sometimes defined as only those algal blooms that produce toxins, and sometimes as any algal bloom that can result in severely lower oxygen levels in natural waters, killing organisms in marine or fresh waters. Blooms can last from a few days to many months. After the bloom dies, the microbes that decompose the dead algae use up more of the oxygen, generating a "dead zone" which can cause fish die-offs. When these zones cover a large area for an extended period of time, neither fish nor plants are able to survive. Harmful algal blooms in marine environments are often called "red tides".
Gambierdiscus toxicus is a species of photosynthetic unicellular eukaryote belonging to the Alveolata, part of the SAR supergroup. It is a dinoflagellate which can cause the foodborne illness ciguatera, and is known to produce several natural polyethers including ciguatoxin, maitotoxin, gambieric acid, and gambierol. The species was discovered attached to the surface of brown macroalgae.
Karenia is a genus that consists of unicellular, photosynthetic, planktonic organisms found in marine environments. The genus currently consists of 12 described species. They are best known for their dense toxic algal blooms and red tides that cause considerable ecological and economical damage; some Karenia species cause severe animal mortality. One species, Karenia brevis, is known to cause respiratory distress and neurotoxic shellfish poisoning (NSP) in humans.
The Gymnodiniales are an order of dinoflagellates, of the class Dinophyceae. Members of the order are known as gymnodinioid or gymnodinoid. They are athecate, or lacking an armored exterior, and as a result are relatively difficult to study because specimens are easily damaged. Many species are part of the marine plankton and are of interest primarily due to being found in algal blooms. As a group the gymnodinioids have been described as "likely one of the least known groups of the open ocean phytoplankton."
Dinophyceae is a class of dinoflagellates.
Karlodinium is a genus of athecate dinoflagellates that lives worldwide. They are often toxin producing, and compared to the other members of the Kareniaceae, are fairly small at <8-15 µm diameter. They are also able to form intense algal blooms. This species relies of photosynthesis and phagotrphy to grow.
Gonyaulax is a genus of dinoflagellates with the type species Gonyaulax spinifera Diesing. Gonyaulax belongs to red dinoflagellates and commonly causes red tides. It can produce yesotoxins: for example, strains of Gonyaulax spinifera from New Zeland are yessotoxin producers.
Cochlodinium polykrikoides is a species of red tide producing marine dinoflagellates known for causing fish kills around the world, and well known for fish kills in marine waters of Southeast Asia. C. polykrikoides has a wide geographic range, including North America, Central America, Western India, Southwestern Europe and Eastern Asia. Single cells of this species are ovoidal in shape, 30-50μm in length and 25-30μm in width.
Karenia selliformis is a species from the genus Karenia, which are dinoflagellates. It was first discovered in New Zealand. Karenia selliformis produces the highly toxic gymnodimine, and as such is a potentially harmful ocean dweller. Gymnodimine is a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor-blocking phycotoxin, a source of shellfish poisoning.
Karenia bicuneiformis, also known as Karenia bidigitata is a microbial species from the genus Karenia, which are dinoflagellates. It was first discovered in New Zealand.
Karlodinium antarcticum is a species of unarmored dinoflagellates from the genus Karlodinium. It was first isolated from the Australian region of the Southern Ocean, near the polar front. It is medium-sized and is characterized by its long ovoid cell shape and rather long apical groove. It is considered potentially ichthyotoxic.
Karlodinium corrugatum is a species of unarmored dinoflagellates from the genus Karlodinium. It was first isolated from the Australian region of the Southern Ocean, just south of the polar front. It is small-sized and is characterized by having distinctive striations on the epicone surface which are parallel, and a distinctively shaped and placed ventral pore. It is considered potentially ichthyotoxic.
Dinoflagellates are eukaryotic plankton, existing in marine and freshwater environments. Previously, dinoflagellates had been grouped into two categories, phagotrophs and phototrophs. Mixotrophs, however include a combination of phagotrophy and phototrophy. Mixotrophic dinoflagellates are a sub-type of planktonic dinoflagellates and are part of the phylum Dinoflagellata. They are flagellated eukaryotes that combine photoautotrophy when light is available, and heterotrophy via phagocytosis. Dinoflagellates are one of the most diverse and numerous species of phytoplankton, second to diatoms.
Karlodinium armiger is a species of dinoflagellates belonging to the family Kareniaceae. It was first isolated from the Mediterranean sea & described in 2006.
Cochlodinium is a genus of dinoflagellates belonging to the family Gymnodiniaceae. Over the past two decades, harmful algea blooms (HABs) caused by Cochlodinium had occurred more often and expanded from Southeast Asia to regions such as the rest of Asia, North America and Europe.
Lepidodinium is a genus of dinoflagellates belonging to the family Gymnodiniaceae. Lepidodinium is a genus of green dinoflagellates in the family Gymnodiniales. It contains two different species, Lepidodiniumchlorophorum and Lepidodinium viride. They are characterised by their green colour caused by a plastid derived from Pedinophyceae, a green algae group. This plastid has retained chlorophyll a and b, which is significant because it differs from the chlorophyll a and c usually observed in dinoflagellate peridinin plastids. They are the only known dinoflagellate genus to possess plastids derived from green algae. Lepidodinium chlorophorum is known to cause sea blooms, partially off the coast of France, which has dramatic ecological and economic consequences. Lepidodinium produces some of the highest volumes of Transparent Exopolymer Particles of any phytoplankton, which can contribute to bivalve death and the creation of anoxic conditions in blooms, as well as playing an important role in carbon cycling in the ocean.
Karlodinium veneficum is a species of dinoflagellates belonging to the family Kareniaceae. This species is predominantly inhabiting aquatic environments, particularly in temperate coastal regions.
