portrait

Description:

Stokesia (stoke-see-a) vernalis, the only member of the genus; this is an obliquely cone-shaped planktonic ciliate. The oral aperture is located on the flat ventral side and is formed like a furrow. The furrow is equipped an undulating membrane and two membranelles. There are symbiotic green algae in the cytoplasm. There are 3 - 4 micronuclei attached to the ellipsoidal macronucleus. The contractile vacuole is located dorsally and has very obvious pores and collecting canals. This species can be 100 - 220 microns long. This specimen was collected in freshwater ponds near Konstanz, Germany. Focal plane on the pores and collecting canals of the contractile vacuole. Squashed specimen in which the oral apparatus and the contractile vacuole are visible. Differential interference contrast.