Description

Etymology: — This taxon is named in honour of Dr. Lynn A. Brant of Cedar Falls, Iowa, USA. Observations: — Staurophora brantii can be compared to similar species that have a transverse fascia and a preference for waters with elevated electrolytes: Staurophora amphioxys (W. Greg.) D. G. Mann, Staurophora caljonii Cocquyt, Staurophora elata (Hust.) D. G. Mann, Staurophora salina (W. Sm.) Mereschk., and Staurophora wislouchii (Poretzky & Anisimova) D. G. Mann; Stauroneis atacamae Hust., Stauroneis dubitabilis Hust., Stauroneis submarina Hust. and Stauroneis tackei (Hust.) Krammer & Lange-Bert. Several of these were originally placed in the genus Stauroneis, although currently Stauroneis sensu stricto is limited to species occurring in freshwater habitats only (Round et al. 1990). Other brackish to marine taxa considered for comparison were dismissed because they have radically different valve outlines, e. g., Stauroneis desiderata Cleve, Stauroneis pachycephala Cleve, and Stauroneis rossii Hendey. Staurophora brantii may be distinguished from most of those listed above by its size, valve and end shape, striae count, and habitat. Although similar in most of these features, Stauroneis submarina Hust. has a narrow linear central area, unlike the broad deltoid central area of Staurophora brantii. Staurophora brantii overlaps in distribution and shares some habitats on the Northwestern Great Plains with two closely allied taxa: Stauroneis tackei is much smaller and has linear-lanceolate valves (Figs 11 – 14), while Staurophora wislouchii has broadly elliptical valves with short protracted ends (Figs 15 – 17). Habitat, Ecology and Distribution: — Staurophora brantii lives on fine sediments in streams of the Northwestern Great Plains. Most streams in this ecoregion are ephemeral or intermittent, typically consisting of a series of interconnected pools with bottoms composed of fine silt and decomposing organic matter. Records of this taxon in the Montana Diatom Database are distributed by state as follows: Montana (118), North Dakota (3), South Dakota (10), and Wyoming (20). Abundance-weighted mean values for water quality variables in streams where Staurophora brantii occurs suggest that it prefers fresh alkaline waters with somewhat elevated concentrations of electrolytes, particularly sodium and sulfate. The most frequently cooccurring associates of Staurophora brantii are largely mobile, epipelic taxa that prefer elevated concentrations of dissolved solids.

Common Names

Taxonomic Hierarchy

Kingdom: Chromista

Phylum: Ochrophyta

Class: Bacillariophyceae

Order: Cymbellales

Family: Anomoeoneidaceae

Genus: Staurophora

Species: Staurophora brantii L.Bahls, 2012