They are number approximately 16,000 species, which are divided into the orders Centrales and Pennales, though they are sometimes grouped in their own phylum, Bacillariophyta.
They are number approximately 16,000 species, which are divided into the orders Centrales and Pennales, though they are sometimes grouped in their own phylum, Bacillariophyta. They possess a pigment known as fucoxanthin, which acts like chlorophyll. Their silicified cell wall forms a frustule, composed of an epitheca and a hypotheca, and helps in this organism's usefulness in testing a microscope's resolving power. Known as "jewel of the sea" because of their symmetry, FTP, name these floating organisms consisting of two interlocking symmetrical valves.
They are number approximately 16,000 species, which are divided into the orders Centrales and Pennales, though they are sometimes grouped in their own phylum, Bacillariophyta.
{diatoms}