blue-green alga

Definition

Any member of the taxonomic class or phylum Cyanobacteria; a primitive photosynthetic organism similar to bacteria which is thought to have generated the first oxygen in the Earth's atmosphere.

Example Sentences

• "Blue-green algae cells lack nuclei, and pigment is scattered."
• "Northern Ireland’s Lough Neagh, the largest lake in the British Isles, has been hit by recorded levels of potentially toxic blue-green algae that regional agencies say have not been seen since the 1970s."