Novel alpine algae from New Zealand: Chlorophyta Author Novis, Phil M. Allan Herbarium, Landcare Research, PO Box 40, Lincoln 7640, New Zealand; email: novisp @ landcareresearch. co. nz Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Canterbury, Private Bag 4800, Christchurch, New Zealand Author Visnovsky, Gabriel text Phytotaxa 2012 2012-01-01 39 1 30 http://biotaxa.org/Phytotaxa/article/view/phytotaxa.39.1.1 journal article 6144 10.11646/phytotaxa.39.1.1 836e6558-6d05-4ad0-8a82-d11b7c8f9b37 1179-3163 4894684 Elliptochloris philistinensis Novis & Visnovsky , sp. nov. ( Figs 6A–B ) Cellulae juvenes cylindrico-ellipsoidales, 6.2–7.7 µm longae, 3.1–4.6 µm latae, aetate ellipsoideae vel sphaericae, usque ad 8.5 µm latae, unicae vel in greges aggregatae, cytoplasma vesiculis tribus vel pluribus instructa (ut videtur materiam lipidicam includentibus) continentes. Paries cellularis tenuis laevisque. Chloroplastus viridis , parietalis, cupulatus, pyrenoidem unicam per vagina valde segmentata amylacea circumdatam continens. Matrix pyrenoidis thylacoidibus pluribus penetrata sed forma non distincta. Autosporis 2–4 per sporangium regenerans. Type :— NEW ZEALAND : Westland : Mt Philistine , 1400 m , preserved cultured specimen from sample collected 30 November 2007 , CHR610490 . Young cells cylindrical–ellipsoidal, 6.2–7.7 µm long, 3.1–4.6 µm wide, becoming ellipsoidal to spherical with age, up to 8.5 µm wide, singly or in groups, containing 3–numerous vesicles in cytoplasm (thought to contain lipid; Fig. 5A ). Cell wall thin and smooth. Chloroplast green, parietal, cup-shaped, with single pyrenoid surrounded by highly segmented starch sheath ( Fig. 5B ). Pyrenoid matrix penetrated by several thylakoids, but pattern indistinct. Reproduction by autospores, 2–4 per sporangium. Sequence data for the 18S rDNA gene placed E. philistinensis robustly in a clade of Elliptochloris species , but separated from others by a moderately long branch emerging at the first node ( Fig. 8 ). FIGURE 6. Elliptochloris philistinensis (photographed from culture LCR-CG5). A. Light micrograph showing cylindrical– ellipsoidal young cells and several near-spherical mature cells (arrows). Cells contain many vesicles (v), thought to contain lipid. B. Section through an autosporangium, showing daughter cells with chloroplasts containing starch (st) and prominent pyrenoids (pyr) surrounded by starch plates (sp). The pyrenoid matrix is fairly homogeneous. Vesicles (v) thought to contain lipid are visible, and a nucleus (nuc) in one of the cells. Scales: 10 µm in A , 1 µm in B . Habitat:— Alpine herbfield soil. Distribution:— New Zealand . Etymology:— Referring to Mt Philistine, the site of collection. Observations:— Elliptochloris represents a well-defined genus in the Trebouxiophyceae . The pyrenoid of E. marina Letsch et al. 2009 is described as a “thylakoid free region” in the chloroplast, and appears similar to our observations. One other species, E. subsphaerica (Reisigl) Ettl & Gärtner (1995) has a pyrenoid, but this is clearly distinguished from E. philistinensis by young cells that are frequently curved, and by molecular data ( Fig. 8 ). Cultures:— LCR-CG5.