The cyanobacteria are a diverse, ancient lineage of oxygenic, phototrophic bacteria. Ubiquitous in nearly all ecosystems, the alpha-level diversity of these organisms lags behind other algal lineages due to a perceived dearth of phylogenetically useful characters. Recent phylogenetic studies of species within the genus Leptolyngbya have demonstrated that this is a polyphyletic assemblage. One group of strains that fits within the current circumscription of Leptolyngbya is genetically and phylogenetically distinct from Leptolyngbya sensu stricto. Members of this clade possess both a morphological synapomorphy and shared 16S-23S internal transcribed spacer (ITS) secondary structure, allowing the diagnosis of the new cyanobacterial genus Nodosilinea. Members of this genus are united by the unique ability to form nodules along the length of the filament. This trait has been previously observed only in the species Leptolyngbya nodulosa Z. Li et J. Brand, and we have chosen this species as the generitype of Nodosilinea. We currently recognize four species in the genus, N. nodulosa (Z. Li et J. Brand) comb. nov., N. bijugata (Kong.) comb. nov., N. conica sp. nov., and N. epilithica sp. nov.

Department of Biology University of North Florida Jacksonville Florida 32250 USADepartment of Biology John Carroll University University Heights Ohio 45701 USADepartment of Botany Comenius University Bratislavia Slovak RepublicSchool of Biological Sciences University of Texas Austin Texas 78705 USAFaculty of Biological Sciences University of South Bohemia České Budějovice the Czech RepublicDepartment of Biology University of North Florida Jacksonville Florida 32250 USA

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Population genomics and morphological data bridge the centuries of cyanobacterial taxonomy along the continuum of Microcoleus species

Thainema gen. nov. (Leptolyngbyaceae, Synechococcales): A new genus of simple trichal cyanobacteria isolated from a solar saltern environment in Thailand