Plants of the Gila Wilderness
Presented in Association with the
Western New Mexico University Department
of Natural Sciences
Microcoleus sp.
Microcoleus is a genus of filamentous cyanobacterium that has members that live in the ocean and other species that live in arid environments like New Mexico. These filaments exist within a rope-like sheath. The filaments terminate in a bulb like cell called the calyptra. Some strains of Microcoleus produce a potent neurotoxin called anatoxin-a, which is poisonous to animals.
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Microcoleus sp., photomicrograph of filaments within sheath, photo Russ Kleinman & Karen Blisard, growing with the moss Gemmabryum on dry soil on Sheriff's Posse Road in Silver City, November 12, 2025
Microcoleus sp., photomicrograph of filaments within sheath, photo Russ Kleinman & Karen Blisard, growing with the moss Gemmabryum on dry soil on Sheriff's Posse Road in Silver City, November 12, 2025
Microcoleus sp., photomicrograph of filaments within sheath, photo Russ Kleinman & Karen Blisard, growing with the moss Gemmabryum on dry soil on Sheriff's Posse Road in Silver City, November 12, 2025
Microcoleus sp., photomicrograph of filaments within sheath, photo Russ Kleinman & Karen Blisard, growing with the moss Gemmabryum on dry soil on Sheriff's Posse Road in Silver City, November 12, 2025
Microcoleus sp., photomicrograph of filaments within sheath, photo Russ Kleinman & Karen Blisard, growing with the moss Gemmabryum on dry soil on Sheriff's Posse Road in Silver City, November 12, 2025
Microcoleus sp., photomicrograph of filaments within sheath, photo Russ Kleinman & Karen Blisard, growing with the moss Gemmabryum on dry soil on Sheriff's Posse Road in Silver City, November 12, 2025
Microcoleus sp., photomicrograph of filaments, photo Russ Kleinman & Karen Blisard, growing with the moss Gemmabryum on dry soil on Sheriff's Posse Road in Silver City, November 12, 2025
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