100 years later: new discoveries and observations on ceticolous diatoms

Biofilms from the skin of ten cetacean species and from the baleen of gray, humpback, and common minke whales were examined for ceticolous diatoms. Two new epizoic diatoms, Tursiocola cymbelloides sp. nov. and Halamphora baleenicola sp. nov. were described from baleen of gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) and a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), respectively. New ultrastructure details are also described of the rarely observed ceticolous diatoms Epiphalaina aleutica, Tursiocola staurolineata, Plumosigma rimosum, Bennettella ceticola, and Epipellis heptunei. A newly named structure, the “solea”, associated with the polar raphe endings of P. rimosum is described in detail, as is a rudimentary butterfly structure in E. aleutica that further blurs the distinctions between the diatom genera Epiphalaina and Tursiocola. This study also adds four cetacean species to the relatively short list of cetaceans examined microscopically for diatoms.