Premium
THE CRYOFLORA OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST
Author(s) -
Garric Richard K.
Publication year - 1965
Publication title -
american journal of botany
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.218
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1537-2197
pISSN - 0002-9122
DOI - 10.1002/j.1537-2197.1965.tb06750.x
Subject(s) - biology , snow , microfungi , flora (microbiology) , algae , botany , chlamydomonas , population , ecology , geography , paleontology , biochemistry , demography , sociology , meteorology , bacteria , mutant , gene
Descriptions of 24 species of cryophylous algae and 3 species of microfungi are given. Ten of these algae are new records for the algal flora of continental North America. The organisms grouped in the species Chlamydomonas nivalis were found to be by far the most common member of the red snow flora, being found in every area of the Pacific Northwest from which collections were made. Green snow is described from the Olympic National Park, having as its causative agent either Chlamydomonas yellowstonensis, or other snow algae which had lost the characteristic masking (red‐to‐yellow pigmentation) as a result of the population developing in shade. Other members of the snow's flora included species of the following genera: Scotiella, Chodatella, Raphidonema, Tetraëdron, Mycanthococcus, Stichococcus, Chlorosphaera, Protococcus, Gloeothece and Romeria. The 3 fungi identified are: Selenotila nivalis, Chionaster nivalis and Chionaster bicornis. Kol's silicotrophic‐calcitrophic theory which relates the red and green snow vegetation types to the underlying rock composition is evaluated, and it is concluded that there is no sound reason for this correlation. It is suggested that the degree of illumination is a more important factor in determining the distribution of these pigmented organisms.