Trichodesmium (try-koe-des-me-um) is a filamentous cyanobacterium (blue-green alga). It may form blooms or rafts. A significant contributor to nitrogen fixation in the oceans. Differential interference microscopy. data on this strain.
Arthrospira (are-throw-spy-ra) maxima, a blue green alga in which the cells are joined end to end to form twisted, spiral or wavey filaments. Dark ground illumination. data on this strain.
Trichodesmium (trike-owe-des-me-um) bundle. This is a filamentous blue green alga, which can occur in abundances which discolour the water. Not known to produce toxins, but abundances may be high enough to disturb the supply of oxygen to other organisms. This is a dense cluster of filaments. Dark ground image by Dave Caron.
Arthrospira (are-throw-spy-ra) maxima, a blue green alga in which the cells are joined end to end to form twisted filaments. Blue green colour comes from distinctive combination of photosynthetic pigments. Differential interference microscopy. data on this strain.
Description: English: Photo of trichomes of Planktothrix rubescens under inverted microscope with 10x magnification cultivated on medium bg -11 with agar. Date: 7 March 2012. Source: Own work. Author: Vincenzo Damiano.