Real Jardín Botánico, CSIC, Plaza de Murillo 2, Madrid 28014, Spain.
Mycologia. 2011 Jul-Aug;103(4):895-903. doi: 10.3852/10-363. Epub 2011 Jan 24.
A new species of Didymium (Myxomycetes), D. operculatum, is described in this paper, and details of its life cycle are provided. The new species was recorded during studies of the Atacama Desert in Chile. It has been collected directly in the field and isolated in moist chamber cultures prepared with material from an endemic cactus. The distinguishing characters of this species are its dehiscence by means of an apical operculum combined with a whitish calcareous stalk and the banded reticulate ornamentation of the spores. The morphology of this new myxomycete was examined with scanning electron microscopy and light microscopy, and micrographs of relevant details are included in this paper. Some comments are made on the patterns of distribution of Didymium species in arid lands and adaptive characters enabling this genus to colonize such extreme environments. It is proposed that a longer cycle and the ability to resort to resistant forms many times during their development reflect the response of these myxomycetes to the largely unfavorable conditions of their environment.
本文描述了一个新的双皮菌属（黏菌门）物种，即 D. operculatum，并提供了其生命周期的详细信息。该新物种是在对智利阿塔卡马沙漠的研究中记录到的。它是直接在野外采集的，并在湿润室培养中分离出来的，培养材料来自一种地方性仙人掌。该物种的鉴别特征是具有顶端盖的开裂方式，以及白色钙质茎和孢子带纹网饰。本文使用扫描电子显微镜和光学显微镜检查了这种新黏菌的形态，并包含了相关细节的显微照片。对干旱地区双皮菌属物种的分布模式和使该属能够在这种极端环境中定殖的适应特征进行了一些评论。本文提出，较长的生命周期和在其发育过程中多次采用抗性形式的能力反映了这些黏菌对其环境中许多不利条件的反应。
