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| NAS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species |
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Common Name: diatom
Taxonomy: available through 
Identification:
This small bacillariophyte diatom exhibits different morphological variants, including var. gracilis and var. marina. In the Great Lakes, the type species is present. Cells are cylindrical, rectangular in girdle view, and excentrically undulate on the valve surface. The outer valve region is about one fourth the radius of the valve. Every 4th–5th stria on the valve surface is thickened and there is one large off-centre punctum in the central region (Stoermer and Yang 1969; Genkal and Kiss 1993; Klarer and Millie 1994; Tanimura et al. 2004).
The diameter of C. atomus can range from 2.5–11.2 µm (Stoermer and Yang 1969; Belcher and Swale 1978; Hakansson and Clarke 1997; Alfinito et al. 2001; Trigueros et al. 2000). In Lake Michigan the diameter of recorded specimens ranges from 2.5–5 µm (Stoermer and Yang 1969).
Size: <12 microns
Native Range:
Unknown. C. atomus is widespread in freshwater and marine environments in North America, Europe, and Asia, and has also been recorded from Argentina and South Africa. It was originally described from Java and Sumatra (Collins et al. 1977; Belcher and Swale 1978; Ferrario et al. 1989; Sabater and Klee 1990; Oh and Koh 1991; Genkal and Kiss 1993; Mills et al. 1993; Poulickova 1993; Kiss 1996; Hakansson and Clarke 1997; Murakami et al. 1998; Alfinito et al. 2001; Lange and Tiffany 2002; Medioli 2003; Tanimura et al. 2004; Yang et al. 2005).
Nonindigenous Occurrences: C. atomus was recorded for the first time in Lake Michigan in 1964. It now occurs in Lake Ontario and its drainage, Lake Erie and its drainage, and Lake Huron (Lowe and Kline 1976; Makarewicz 1987; Mills et al. 1993; Klarer and Millie 1994).
Ecology: C. atomus is frequently associated with high nutrient concentrations. It is particularly tolerant of high total phosphorus. It is often associated with polluted, eutrophic, warm harbors and nearshore areas in the Great Lakes (Stoermer and Ladewski 1976; Yang et al. 2005; Weckstrom and Juggins 2006; Sgro et al. 2007),
C. atomus grows well at 15-20ºC and occurs at maximum abundance at the upper end of this range, although it can also tolerate higher temperatures. It has been recorded in spring and summer in the Great Lakes drainage (Stoermer and Ladewski 1976; Poulickova 1993; Klarer and Millie 1994).
C. atomus can tolerate turbulence as well as frequent osmotic stress. It has been recorded from fresh, brackish, and saltwater. In Lake Michigan it occurs in littoral areas that have abnormally high chloride levels. It has made up 8.3% of the diatoms in the Lake Ontario and Oswego River regions during periods of high chloride concentration (Stoermer and Yang 1969; Makarewicz 1987; Mills et al. 1993; Hakansson and Clarke 1997; Tanimura et al. 2004).
C. atomus can occur as a resting stage in sediments, and does so in the Great Lakes (Mills et al. 1993).
Means of Introduction: C. atomus was very likely introduced in ballast water (Mills et al. 1993).
Status: Established where recorded.
Impact of Introduction: Unknown.
Remarks:
References
Alfinito, S., P. Cavacini, and N. Tagliaventi. 2001. The genus Cyclotella (Bacillariophyta, Thallassiosiraceae) in fresh- and brackish-water habitats of Latium and Molise (Central Italy). Archiv fuer Hydrobiologie 137(suppl.):57-73.
Belcher, J. H. and E. M. F. Swale. 1978. Skeletonema potamos and Cyclotella atomus Bacillariophyceae in the plankton of rivers in England and France. British Phycological Journal 13(2):177-182.
Collins, G. B., B. H. McFarland, and C. I. Weber. The distribution and identification of centric diatoms collected on artificial substrates from 27 U.S. rivers. Journal of Phycology 13(suppl.):14.
Ferrario, M. E., R. G. Godina, and M. C. Damborene. 1989. About some freshwater centric diatoms from Argentina. Iheringia Serie Botanica 39:55-68.
Genkal, S. I. and K. T. Kiss. 1993. Morphological variability of the diatom Cyclotella atomus Hustedt var. atomus and C. atomus var. gracilis var. nov. Hydrobiologia 269/270:39-47.
Hakansson, H. and K. B. Clarke. 1997. Morphology and taxonomy of the centric diatom Cyclotella atomus. Nova Hedwigia 65(1-4):207-219.
Jackson, R. H., P. J. Le B. Williams, and I. R. Joint. 1987. Freshwater phytoplankton in the low salinity region of the River Tamar estuary. Estuarine, Coastal, and Shelf Science 25(3):299-311.
Kiss, K. T. 1996. Diurnal changes of planktonic diatoms in the River Danube near Budapest (Hungary). Archiv fuer Hydrobiologie 112(suppl.):113-122.
Klarer, D. M. and D. F. Millie. 1994. Regulation of phytoplankton dynamics in a Laurentian Great Lakes estuary. Hydrobiologia 286:97-108.
Lange, C. B. and M. A. Tiffany. 2002. The diatom flora of the Salton Sea, California. Hyrobiologia 473:179-201.
Lowe, R. L. and P. A. Kline. 1976. Planktonic centric diatoms from the Sandusky River, Ohio, USA. Pp. 143-152 in D. B. Baker, W. B. Jackson, and B. L. Prater (eds.) International Reference Group on Great Lakes Pollution from Land Use Activities. Sandusky River Basin Symposium, Tiffin, Ohio, USA, May 2-3, 1975. US Government Printing Office: Washington, D.C. 475 pp.
Makarewicz, J. C. 1987. Phytoplankton composition, abundance, and distribution: nearshore Lake Ontario and Oswego River and Harbor. Journal of Great Lakes Research 13(1):56-64.
Medioli, B. E. and G. R. Brooks. 2003. Diatom and thecamoebian signatures of Red River (Manitoba and North Dakota) floods: data collected from the 1997 and 1999 spring freshets. Journal of Paleolimnology 29(3):353-386.
Mills, E. L., J. H. Leach, J. T. Carlton, and C. L. Secor. 1993. Exotic species in the Great Lakes: a history of biotic crises and anthropogenic introductions. Journal of Great Lakes Research 19(1):1-54.
Murakami, T., N. Kuroda, and T. Tanaka. 1998. Effects of a rivermouth barrage on planktonic algal development in the lower Niagara River, Central Japan. Japanese Journal of Limnology 59(3):251-262.
Oh, S.-H. and C.-H. Koh. 1991. Distribution pattern of dominant benthic diatoms on the Mangyung-Dongjin tidal flat, west coast of Korea. Journal of the Korean Society of Oceanography 26(1):24-37.
Poulickova, A. 1993. Ecological study of seasonal maxima of centric diatoms. Archiv fuer Hydrobiologia 96(suppl.):85-106.
Sabater, S. and R. Klee. 1990. Observations on centric diatoms on the River Ebro, Spain, phytoplankton with special interest on some small Cyclotella. Diatom Research 5(1):141-154.
Sgro, G. V., E. D. Reavie, J .C. Kingston, A. R. Kireta, M. J. Ferguson, N. P. Danz, and J. R. Johansen. 2007. A diatom quality index from a diatom-based total phosphorus inference model. Environmental Bioindicators 2:15-34.
Stoermer, E. F. and J. J. Yang. 1969. Plankton diatom assemblages in Lake Michigan. Great Lakes Research Division, University of Michigan, Special Report No. 47. 268 pp.
Stoermer, E. F. and T. B. Ladewski. 1976. Apparent optimal temperatures for the occurrence of some common phytoplankton species in southern Lake Michigan. Great Lakes Research Division, University of Michigan, Publication No. 18.
Tanimura, Y, T. Naqumo, and M. Kato. 2004. A new variety of Cyclotella atomus from Tokyo Bay, Japan: C. atomus var. marina var. nov. Bulletin of the National Science Museum Series C (Geology and Paleontology):5-11.
Trigueros, J. M., A. Ansotegui, E. Orive and M. L. No. 2000. Morphology and distribution of two brackish diatoms (Bacillariophyceae): Cyclotella atomus Hustedt and Thalassiosira guillardii Hasle in the estuary of Urdaibai (northern Spain). Nova Hedwigia 70(3-4):431-450.
Weckstrom, K. and S. Juggins. 2006. Coastal diatom-environment relationships from the Gulf of Finland, Baltic Sea. Journal of Phycology 42(1):21-35.
Yang, X., X. Dong, G. Gao, H. Pan, and J. Wu. 2005. Relationship between surface sediment diatoms and summer water quality in shallow lakes of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Journal of Integrative Plant Biology 47(2):153-164.
Author: Rebekah M. Kipp
Contributing Agencies: 
NOAA - GLERL
Revision Date: 6/25/2007 Citation for this information:
Rebekah M. Kipp. 2009. Cyclotella atomus. USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database, Gainesville, FL.
<http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.asp?speciesID=1669> Revision Date: 6/25/2007
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