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Portrait (left side) of the rhabdophorine ciliate, Siroloxophyllum utriculariae (Penard,1922) Foissner,1995. Siroloxophyllum was erected as a new genus based on the "adoral bulge" which encircles almost the entire circumference of the cell, a single dorsolateral brush kinety and morphologically distinct right and left Dorsolateral kineties different from other somatic kineties. The strongly laterally compressed cell is lancet shaped in outline. The cell is slightly contractile and highly flexible. The rounded anterior end is curved dorsally. The posterior is bluntly tapered. The flat right side bears 13-20 longitudinal kineties. The left side has 3-8 prominent longitudinal ridges (seen here) bearing short cilia. The slit-like cytostome is located along the anteroventral edge. A hyaline band containing long rod shaped extrusomes borders the cell. There is a distinctive structure which looks like a helix or twisted cord bordering the entire edge of the cell except for a short length of the anterior dorsal end. This is best seen at the ventral anterior end in this image (viewer's left). The perpendicularly arranged peripheral extrusomes appear to anchor their exterior ends in this structure. There are two contractile vacuoles (seen here), the anterior one just ventral to the macronuclei and the posterior one located dorsally. A food vacuole is seen immediately posterior to the macronucleus here. The central macronucleus is bipartite. The inconspicuous micronucleus is located between the two parts of the macronucleus. S. utriculariae swims slowly, gliding gracefully over the substrate. Differentiated from the similar L. helus by absence of trichocyst warts along the dorsal surface. Most easily confused with Amphileptus species which lack the distinctive bordering cord-like structure described above except for a short part of the anterior ventral surface and also have an anterior kinetal suture (spica) on the right surface. S. utriculariae may also be confused with Litonotus species which usually have a single contractile vacuole and extrusomes limited to only part of the ventral surface. Collected from a freshwater dredge pond near Boise, Idaho October 2004. DIC.
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A somewhat contracted cell, extrusomes are evident as thin rods underlying the surface of the cell. Phase contrast microscopy.
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Portrait (right surface) of the rhabdophorine ciliate, Siroloxophyllum utriculariae (Penard,1922) Foissner,1995. Siroloxophyllum was erected as a new genus based on the "adoral bulge" which encircles almost the entire circumference of the cell, a single dorsolateral brush kinety and morphologically distinct right and left Dorsolateral kineties different from other somatic kineties. The strongly laterally compressed cell is lancet shaped in outline. The cell is slightly contractile and highly flexible. The rounded anterior end is curved dorsally. The posterior is bluntly tapered. The flat right side bears 13-20 longitudinal kineties. The left side has 3-8 prominent longitudinal ridges bearing short cilia. The slit-like cytostome is located along the anteroventral edge. A hyaline band containing long rod shaped extrusomes borders the cell. There is a distinctive structure which looks like a helix or twisted cord bordering the entire edge of the cell except for a short length of the anterior dorsal end. The perpendicularly arranged peripheral extrusomes appear to anchor their exterior ends in this structure. There are two contractile vacuoles. The central macronucleus is bipartite. The inconspicuous micronucleus is located between the two parts of the macronucleus (not seen here). S. utriculariae swims slowly, gliding gracefully over the substrate. Differentiated from the similar L. helus by absence of trichocyst warts along the dorsal surface. Most easily confused with Amphileptus species which lack the distinctive bordering cord-like structure described above above except for a short part of the anterior ventral surface and also have an anterior kinetal suture (spica) on the right surface. May also be confused with Litonotus species which usually have a single contractile vacuole and extrusomes limited to only part of the ventral surface. Collected from a freshwater dredge pond near Boise, Idaho October 2004. DIC.
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Portrait of Loxophyllum helus (Stokes, 1884, Penard, 1922) a rhabdophorine ciliate. The body is elongate and laterally compressed. The left side is sparsely ciliated and slightly domed the flat right side is more densely ciliated. Very flexible. Prominent trichocyst warts occur at intervals along the dorsal edge (seen well here). A narrow flattened band traversed by trichocysts runs along the entire ventral edge. The slit-like oral aperture is located on the anterior ventral edge. There is one posterior contractile vacuole. The macronucleus is bipartite flanking a small micronucleus. Preys on rotifers and other ciliates. Collected from freshwater pond near Boise, Idaho in June 2003. DIC optics.
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Portrait (right side) of the pleurostomatid ciliate, Siroloxophyllum utriculariae (Penard,1922) Foissner,1995. Siroloxophyllum was erected as a new genus based on the "oral bulge" which encircles almost the entire circumference of the cell, a single dorsolateral brush kinety and morphologically distinct right and left dorsolateral kineties different from other somatic kineties. The strongly laterally compressed cell is lancet shaped in outline. The cell is slightly contractile and highly flexible. The rounded anterior end is curved dorsally. The posterior is bluntly tapered. The flat right side bears 13-20 longitudinal kineties. The basal bodies of one of the perioral kineties are seen well here along the ventral (viewer's right) margin. The left side has 3-8 prominent longitudinal ridges bearing short cilia. The slit-like cytostome is located along the anteroventral edge. A hyaline band borders the cell. There is a distinctive structure which looks like a helix or twisted cord bordering the entire edge of the cell except for a short length of the anterior dorsal end. This is best seen at the anterior end in this image. The perpendicularly arranged peripheral extrusomes appear to anchor their exterior ends in this structure except in a short portion of the dorsal anterior edge where extrusomes and the string-like structure bordering the cell edge are absent. SEM studies suggest that all pleurostomatid ciliates have a string-like structure on the cell margin but in other genera this occupies 1/2 the cell circumference or less. There are two contractile vacuoles (seen here), the anterior one just ventral to the macronuclei and the posterior one located dorsally. The central macronucleus is bipartite. The inconspicuous micronucleus (seen here) is located between the two parts of the macronucleus. S. utriculariae swims slowly, gliding gracefully over the substrate. Differentiated from the similar L. helus by absence of trichocyst warts along the dorsal surface. Most easily confused with Amphileptus species which lack the distinctive bordering cord-like structure around most of its circumference and also have an anterior kinetal suture (spica) on the right surface. S. utriculariae may also be confused with Litonotus species in which the oral bulge is limited to the anterior end of the ventral side. Collected from a freshwater dredge pond near Boise, Idaho October 2004. DIC.
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Portrait of Loxophyllum helus (Stokes, 1884, Penard, 1922) a rhabdophorine ciliate. The body is elongate and laterally compressed. The left side is sparsely ciliated and slightly domed the flat right side is more densely ciliated. Very flexible. Prominent trichocyst warts occur at intervals along the dorsal edge (seen well here). A narrow flattened band traversed by trichocysts runs along the entire ventral edge. The slit-like oral aperture is located on the anterior ventral edge. There is one posterior contractile vacuole. The macronucleus is bipartite flanking a small micronucleus. Preys on rotifers and other ciliates. Collected from freshwater pond near Boise, Idaho in June 2003. DIC optics.
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The oral bulge of this genus extends from the anterior end around the circumference of the cell to the anterior part of the dorsal side stopping short of the anterior apex on the dorsal side. This feature is the main distinguishing feature of the genus. In other pleurostomatid genera the oral bulge, although similar in structure, extends no furthe than the posterior end of the ventral side. The oral bulge has the appearance of a helical structure or a two stranded string. The yellow arrow in this image indicates the oral bulge along the dorsal edge of the cell. It is likely that only the anterior portion of the oral bulge on the ventral surface opens during feeding. DIC.
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Portrait of Loxophyllyum, large pleurostomatid ciliate, which is highly laterally, compressed. Glides with ribbon-like movement over substrate. Oral region is slit-like and oriented to the right in this image. Wart-like aggregates of extrusomes are seen at intervals along the dorsal (left) surface. Macronucleus is multinodal in this species. Many species. This species, from standing fresh water near Boise, Idaho, has been preying on rotifers. Oblique illumination.
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(Originally described under the name Lionotus fasciola). a -- Anus al -- Pellicular alveoli cv -- Contractile vacuole M -- Mane, made up of a series of stronger cilia N -- Macronucleus ncl -- Micronucleus o -- Mouth p -- Pellicle P -- Peristome tr -- Trichocysts
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Portrait of the pleurostomatid ciliate, Loxophyllyum meleagris (Mueller,1773) Dujardin, 1841. Glides with ribbon-like movement over substrate. Oral region is slit-like and oriented to the right in this image. Wart-like aggregates of extrusomes are seen at intervals along the dorsal (left) surface. Macronucleus is multinodal in this species. From standing temporary fresh water puddlenear Boise, Idaho. Phase contrast illumination.
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(Originally described under the name Lionotus fasciola) View of the right side. Key to Schewiakoff's abbreviations: al -- Pellicular alveoli cv -- Contractile vacuole N -- Macronucleus nk -- Food particles p -- Pellicle tr -- Trichocysts
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Detail view (dorsal surface) of the large pleurostomatid ciliate, Loxophyllum meleagris (Mueller,1773) Dujardin, 1841. The strongly laterally compressed cell is scimitar-shaped in outline. . The cell is slightly contractile and highly flexible. The rounded anterior end is curved dorsally. The posterior is bluntly tapered. The right side is more densely ciliated than the left. Somatic kineties are longitudinal. The dorsal edge bears characteristic nodular protrusions called extrusome warts (seen well here). The slit-like cytostome is located along the anteroventral edge. There is one posterior contractile vacuole which has a long collecting canal extending anteriorly along the dorsal edge of the cell. The macronucleus (part of which is seen well here) is moniliform. There are multiple inconspicuous micronuclei (not seen here). L.meleagris swims slowly, gliding gracefully over the substrate. L.meleagris feeds on other ciliates and even metazoans such as rotifers. Differentiated from the similar L. helus by its much larger size. Collected from a freshwater agricultural irrigation ditch near McCall, Idaho 9/21/03. DIC.
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(Originally described under the name Lionotus fasciola) Anterior, ventral view. Key to Schewiakoff's abbreviations: cl -- Cilia M -- Mane, consisting of a series of stronger cilia o -- Mouth P -- Peristome tr -- Trichocysts
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Portrait (right side) of the large pleurostomatid ciliate, Loxophyllum meleagris (Mueller,1773) Dujardin, 1841. The strongly laterally compressed cell is scimitar-shaped in outline. . The cell is slightly contractile and highly flexible. The rounded anterior end is curved dorsally. The posterior is bluntly tapered. The right side is more densely ciliated than the left. Somatic kineties are longitudinal. The dorsal edge bears characteristic nodular protrusions called extrusome warts. The slit-like cytostome is located along the anteroventral edge. There is one posterior contractile vacuole which has a long collecting canal extending anteriorly along the dorsal edge of the cell. The macronucleus is moniliform. There are multiple inconspicuous micronuclei (not seen here). L.meleagris swims slowly, gliding gracefully over the substrate. L.meleagris feeds on other ciliates and even metazoans such as rotifers. Differentiated from the similar L. helus by its much larger size. Collected from a freshwater agricultural irrigation ditch near McCall, Idaho 9/21/03. DIC.
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Originally described by Ehrenberg under the name Amphileptus fasciola.
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This image of the anterior end shows the curved oral region with faintly visible extrusomes that are used to capture protists as food. The surface is folded along the lines of the kineties. The contractile vacuole, upper left, has a long feeding canal, and the macronucleus is in the form of a series of linked beads. Phase contrast.
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Originally described by Ehrenberg under the name Amphileptus fasciola.
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Interference contrast image of a single living cell. the warts on the oral face are distinctive.
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Originally described by Ehrenberg under the name Amphileptus fasciola.
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Infraciliature (left side) of Loxophyllum meleagris (Mueller,1773) Dujardin, 1841. The oral bulge (OB is bordered by one left perioral kinety (PK1) and two right perioral kineties (only PK2 visible here). The dorsal edge bears characteristic nodular protrusions called extrusome or trichocyst warts (TW). A row of unciliated kinetids is seen at the base of each trichocyst wart (UK)The slit-like cytostome is located in the center of the oral bulge. DK= dorsal brush kinetids. Collected from a freshwater canal in Boise,Idaho 10/27/08. Protargol.Brightfield.
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Litonotus (light-o-note-us) is one of the more commonly encountered predatory ciliates. Scyth-shaped, and flattened. The mouth is located on the convex curve of the anterior part of the body (upper right in the picture). The food is captured in part by the action of rod-shaped extrusomes which can be seen just inside the cell adjacent to the mouth. The large structure near the centre of the cell is the macronucleus. The light region towards the rear is the contractile vacuole. Cilia cover the body in sparse kineties. Phase contrast.
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Litonotus (light-o-note-us) is one of the more commonly encountered predatory ciliates. It is flattened, and glides along the substrate, exploring detritus with the anterior convex margin - which is where the mouth is located. There are extrusomes just internal to the margin of the cell, and these can be discharged to kill potential prey - usually other ciliates. Phase contrast.
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Litonotus (light-o-note-us) is one of the more commonly encountered predatory ciliates. It is flattened, and glides along the substrate, exploring detritus with the anterior convex margin - which is where the mouth is located. There are extrusomes just internal to the margin of the cell, and these can be discharged to kill potential prey - usually other ciliates. Phase contrast.
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