details

Description:

Euglena gracilis (you-glean-a grass-ill-iss). Euglena is the iconic genus of euglenoid flagellates, and this is probably the most familiar of the species. These cells have been compressed, but the body is usually spindle-shaped. Although two flagella arise in a pocket within the cell only one emerges. The body can squirm, and the cell has many chloroplasts. At the anterior of the body a thin channel (flagellar canal) leads to the flagellar pocket, and alongside this is a contractile vacuole. A red eyespot or stigma is associated with the bottom of the flagellar canal. This image shows the nucleus (central). Differential interference contrast.