Nupela potapovae sp. nov. (Bacillariophyta), a lentic alpine species from North America

Abstract

Nupela potapovae sp. nov., a distinctive new species from ponds and small lakes in the Rocky Mountains of western North America, is described and compared with similar species. In the central area under light microscopy, the new species displays four refractive spots that correspond to shallow internal depressions adjacent to the proximal raphe endings. Nupela potapovae shares this feature with N. rhetica (Wuthrich) Lange-Bertalot, a lentic alpine species from Switzerland.

Keywords:

• Nupela
• alpine diatoms
• Rocky Mountains
• North America
• Glacier National Park
• Montana

Acknowledgements

This project was supported in part by grants from an anonymous donor and from the National Park Service's Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit at the University of Montana. Saúl Blanco provided the Latin translation of the English species description. Michel Poulin and two anonymous reviewers improved the manuscript with helpful suggestions.