AUTHORSHIP OF THE FRESHWATER RED ALGAL SPECIES TUOMEYA AMERICANA (BATRACHOSPERMACEAE)

Abstract

Tuomeya Harvey (1858) is recognized as a genus of freshwater red algae of the order Batrachospermales (Kumano 2002; Vis et al. 1998). Tuomeya americana was originally described and reported from the eastern half of North America (Bailey 1848; Flint 1948; Harvey 1858; Kaczmarczyk et al. 1993; Kutzing 1857; Prescott 1951; Sheath and Hymes 1980; Smith 1950). Although Sheath (2003) referred to T. americana as unique to North America, the species now is known also from South Africa (Borge 1928), Finland (Eloranta and Kwandrans 1996), India (Babu and Baluswami 2005), and China (Feng et al. 2007). The record of T. americana from Australia (from a Master’s thesis and reported by Day et al. 1995) is based on a misidentification (T. Entwisle, Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney, pers. comm.). A second species reported from North America, T. grandis (Wolle) Wolle (Wolle 1887), was transferred to Paralemanea (Kumano 2002). An additional species, T. gibberosa Kumano (1978), was described from Malaysia but later transferred to Batrachospermum (Kumano 1986). Necchi and Entwisle’s (1990) proposal to relegate Tuomeya to the status of a section within Batrachospermum was opposed by Kaczmarczyk et al. (1993) and has not been subsequently followed (Vis et al. 1998). Ever since Papenfuss (1958) proposed the binomial Tuomeya americana (Kutz.) Papenf. to replace the taxonomic synonym T. fluviatilis Harv., the authorship of the former name has persisted in the literature, including contemporary publications and on-line resources (Bourrelly 1970; Entwisle 1984; Guiry and Guiry 2007; Kaczmarczyk et al. 1993; Kapraun et al. 2007; Kumano 2002; Sheath 2003; Vis and Entwisle 2000; Vis et al. 1998, 2005). Papenfuss (1958) pointed out that Kutzing’s (1857) Baileya americana predated RHODORA, Vol. 109, No. 940, pp. 464–467, 2007 E Copyright 2007 by the New England Botanical Club