Morphology

Cells length: 30–50 μm, width: 20-25 μm; Flagella: two, swimming and trailing flagellum, approximately equal to cell length. Live cells show pyriform shape with a colorless tail at the posterior end, and preserved cells often appear round/lobed. Chloroplasts: numerous, green (yellowish green).

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Toxins and toxicity

Produce brevetoxins; Responsible for fish and shrimp kills (Lum et al., 2021).

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Ecology

Chattonella species possess various characteristics (such as phenotypic plasticity, tolerance to a wide range of temperatures, capacity for diel vertical migrations, and mixotrophy) that allow them to thrive in eutrophicated coastal waters despite the changeable conditions of these environments.

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Distribution and Occurrence

Described from brackish areas rich in organic material; coastal, southeast Asia, Western Pacific. In this study, massive blooms in REF-2, PGD-2, and OMWM-2 between June and August.

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References

Lum, W. M. and others. 2021. The harmful raphidophyte Chattonella (Raphidophyceae) in Western Pacific: Its red tides and associated fisheries damage over the past 50 years (1969–2019). Harmful Algae 107: 102070. doi:10.1016/j.hal.2021.102070

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