Thecadiniopsis tasmanicagen. et sp. nov. (Dinophyta: Thecadiniaceae) from Tasmanian freshwaters

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Abstract
A new genus of planktonic peridinioid dinoflagellates is described from Tasmanian coastal lagoons and dystrophic freshwater lakes. In the possession of a single antapical, and two large lateral plates, its hypotheca resembles that of the bilaterally flattened, marine, sanddwelling genus Thecadinium Kofoid et Skogsberg. The new genus Thecadiniopsis is distinct in having an ovoid cell-shape, a left-handedly displaced girdle, and a prominent asymmetric epitheca with complex plate configuration. The plate tabulation of Thecadiniopsis tasmanica gen. et sp. nov. [P0, 4′, 1a. 4″, 5c, 5(?)s, 5‴, 1⁗] is illustrated by scanning electron micrographs of whole cells and of plates separated by hypochlorite treatment.