Dunaliella
Overview
Algae
Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...
, specifically of the Dunaliellaceae
Dunaliellaceae
In taxonomy, the Dunaliellaceae are a family of algae, specifically of the Chlamydomonadales.-Scientific databases:...
.
Dunaliella sp. are motile, unicellular, rod to ovoid shaped (9 - 11 µm) green algae
Green algae
The green algae are the large group of algae from which the embryophytes emerged. As such, they form a paraphyletic group, although the group including both green algae and embryophytes is monophyletic...
(Chlorophyceae
Chlorophyceae
The Chlorophyceae are one of the classes of green algae, distinguished mainly on the basis of ultrastructural morphology. For example the chlorophycean CW clade, and chlorophycean DO clade, are defined by the arrangement of their flagella. Members of the CW clade have flagella that are displaced...
), which are common in marine waters.
The organisms are relatively simple to cultivate and do not clump or form chains.
A new species of Dunaliella was discovered in the Atacama desert in 2010.
