A new centric diatom genus, Ferocia Van de Vijver & Houk gen. nov. is described based on Melosira setosa Greville. Several samples collected in lava tunnels on Ile Amsterdam, a small isolated, volcanic island in the southern Indian Ocean where the latter taxon dominated the diatom flora, were investigated. The new genus is characterized by having heavily silici-fied, spherical frustules, connected into long chains by large, complex linking spines. Valves are dome-shaped with a high mantle with rounded to irregularly shaped areolae. Numerous small rimoportulae forming a marginal ring are present near the mantle edge. The cingulum is composed of a large number of narrow, open copulae. A second species, Ferocia ninae Van de Vijver & Houk sp. nov., is described from the nearby Crozet archipelago. Besides the typical features of the genus Ferocia, the rimoportulae in F. ninae are almost equidistant, the valves have a relatively low valve height and the spines are relatively small. Both F. ninae and F. setosa were found in shaded lava tunnels with a sparse moss vegetation. The two species are illustrated and discussed based on detailed LM and SEM observations. © 2017 Magnolia Press.