Guide to Urosolenia

Urosolenia includes small, centric species that are lightly silicified. Frustules typically lie in girdle view. One elongated spine extends from each valve face. Numerous scale-like copulae, or girdle bands, join the two shallow valves within a frustule.

Frustules of Urosolenia are fragile and are often destroyed by standard oxidative preparation for diatoms. Because of its fine structure, it is not often reported in surveys. Cells are best viewed live, or with burned mount preparations. Urosolenia produces heavily silicified resting spores that may be preserved in sediments. The genus occurs commonly in shallow, eutrophic lakes.