ASEXUAL DEVELOPMENTAL PATTERNS OF THE DIATOM STAURONEIS ANCEPS IN CULTURE 1 2 3

During several months under controlled growth conditions, cell division in the diatom Stauroneis anceps resulted in a gradual decrease in length as predicted by the Macdonald‐Pfitzer hypothesis. Cells of a clone decreased in average length from 35 to 17 μ. The smallest cell observed measured 12 μ. Cells longer than 26 μ typically had capitate ends. As the cells became shorter, there was a gradual decrease in this capitate configuration with the smallest cells being oval in outline. The estimated increment of size reduction due to cell division in the clone was 0.1 μ per division. This value is dependent on the assumption of random division. Populations with cells less than 28 μ in length showed an increase in valve aberrations, but these cells continued to reproduce. A cell 13 μ long and similar to the smallest specimen of the clone was observed from a core sample with fossil specimens of S. anceps.