Additions To Our Knowledge 
of the Desmid Flora of Michigan 
W. E. WADE 
Natural Science Department. Michigan State University 
Numerous studies of Michigan desmids hâve becn made since 
Campbell published the first list of 41 species from the Detroit 
River in 1886. Pieters (1894) ^vith 58 species from Lake St. Clair, 
and Johnson (1894, 1895) wilh several lists from the southeastern 
part of the state were aiso early investigators. West and West 
published a list of species from the saine area in 1898. 
Transeau (1917) in his study on the algae of Michigan, included 
desmids from both the lower and upper peninsulas. Nichols and 
Ackley (1932) were the ftrst to discuss the ecology and distribu¬ 
tion of this group within the state in addition to listing 325 species 
(inclnding previous records), niainly from Douglas Lake région. 
Ackley also described two new forms from Michigan in 1929. 
Several liinnological papers by Welch (1936a, 1936b, 1938a, 1938b) 
on the bog lakes of tlie northern lower peninsula include desmid 
species. The desmid population of Isle Royale in Lake Superior 
was thoroughly covered by a sériés of paper by Taylor on plank- 
ton (1935) and by Prescott on non-plankton (1937, 1938, 1949, 
1941). Prescott also was senior author of a pa])er with Magnotta 
(1935) based on collections from Marquette and Calhoiin counties. 
Taft (1939) included about 50 new records. Gustafson (1942) 
published a complété bibliography of articles on Michigan algae 
(exclusion of those concerned solely with diatoms) and also 
included a numerical census of species in the varions taxonomie 
groups of algae reported previously from Michigan (of which 575 
species, or about 40 % of the total were desmids). Minor records 
of several species were also made by Neel (1948) in his study of 
the psammon of Douglas Lake, and by Wade (1949) in his study 
of a hardwater lake of the Southern part of the state. 
Finally and by far the most significant contribution to our 
understanding of both the taxonomy and ecology of Michigan algae 
has been Prescott’s (1951) comprehensive treatise on the Algae 
of the Western Great Lakes Région, although here unfortunately 
