This Atlas of Cyanobacteria uses high quality digital images to illustrate the diversity of cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) in New England, with supplemental images from the Pacific Northwest.
The Atlas includes images of cyanobacteria that cause HABS (harmful algal blooms), such as Aphanizomenon, Cylindrospermopsis, Dolichospermum, Microcystis, Nodularia, and Planktothrix, as well as other commonly encountered cyanobacteria such as Anabaena, Arthrospira, Chroococcus, Gloeocapsa, Gloeotrichia, Merismopedia, Microcoleus, Nostoc, Oscillatoria, Phormidium, Scytonema, Spirulina, Stigonema, Tolypothrix, Woronichinia, and many others that may aid in the identification of these organisms.
Another purpose of this searchable collection of cyanobacteria is to illustrate some of the complexities in identifying these enigmatic organisms. The images show the blue-green algae in their "normal" textbook forms but also in their aberrations and how they routinely morph into other "species" when the conditions of their environment are less than ideal.
How to browse the images:
Select a group of algae by clicking on a group and then a subgroup. A sample of images in the subgroup will appear below.
Click on one of the sample thumbnails to view a full size gallery of all algae images in your selected group.
Refine your selection by clicking further subgroups as they appear.
Alternatively, use the drop down menu to select a genus.
Photo credits:
All photos are taken from freshly collected, live specimens by Gerald Oemig (except where captioned).
I would like to thank Dr. Robin Matthews, Professor Emeritus of the Environmental Sciences Department at Western Washington University, Mr. Michael Kausch of Fordham University, and Norm Trigoboff of Ithaca NY for their help and photographic contributions to this edition of the Atlas. THANK YOU!
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