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Tuberculodinium vancampoae

Zonneveld, K.A.F. and Pospelova V. (2015). A determination key for modern dinoflagellate cysts. Palynology 39 (3), 387- 407.

 
archeopyle
sample: sapropel S3, Crete,
Eastern Mediterranean
photograph: Gerard Versteegh
cyst from culture 16.5°C
reduced processes
photograph: Ewa Susek
cyst from culture 27°C
photograph: Ewa Susek

Field charcteristics

Tuberculodinium vancampoae (Rossignol 1962) Wall 1967

Field characteristics:
Large cyst of subrectangular shape (lateral view) and subcircular in polar view. The cyst bears 30 - 50 solid, barrel-shaped processes arranged in longitudinal rows. The processes can be connected distally. According to Matsuoka et al. (1998), the compound archeopyle is epicystal, although its outline can not clearly be subscribed to apical or precingular plates.

Dimensions: Cyst length 80–110 µm x 50–55 µm; length of tubercules: ~ 13 µm.
Motile affinity: Pyrophacus steinii (Schiller 1935) Wall et Dale 1971
Cyst theca relationship: Wall and Dale 1971

Comparison with other species:
This species is easily to recognise because of its robust shape and its very characteristic bulbous, barrel shaped processes. The distal upper parts of the processes can be connected. The cell wall is smooth and in modern sediments it has a yellow colour. The processes can be reduced or disformed in environments with water temperatures that are at the edge of the species tolerance (Zonneveld and Susek, 2007).

Geographic distribution

Geographic distribution based on :
Zonneveld et al., 2013. Atlas of modern dinoflagellate cyst distribution based on 2405 datapoints. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, v. 191, 1-197
Tuberculodinium vancampoae is a subtropical (warm temperate) to equatorial coastal species that occurs in oligotrophic to eutrophic environments where bottom waters are well ventilated and in general full-marine.
Distribution:
Tuberculodinium vancampoae is restricted to subtropical to equatorial coastal regions. Highest abundances (up to 30%) occur in coastal embayments around Japan and the upwelling areas off equatorial Africa.

Environmental parameters:
SST: 3.9 - 29.8°C (winter - spring) with summer SST: >14.2°C. The environment is full marine with SSS: 27.8 - 39.2 (autumn - summer) with exception of one site near the coast off Brazil where SSS: 19.7 (spring), 21.1 (winter), 23.9 (summer) and 31.3 (autumn). [P]: 0.06 - 1.06 μmol/l, [N]: 0.14 - 4.6 μmol/l, chlorophyll-a: 0.01 - 20.0 ml/l, bottom water [O2]: 1.3 - 5.9 ml/l.
Highest relative abundances occur where SSS: is > 32.9 throughout the year.

Comparison with other records:
Apart from the recordings in this Atlas, T. vancampoae has been reported from coastal sites in the South China Sea, the Indonesian waters, around the Australian continent, the Red Sea, gulf of Oman, northern Arabian Sea, central western equatorial Atlantic, off the Iberian Peninsula and the eastern equatorial Pacific (Marret and Zonneveld, 2003; Usup et al., 2012 and references therein).