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Vorticella

 
Vorticella

 
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Vorticella
 
 
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Vorticella is a genus of protozoa
Protozoa

Protozoan are microorganisms classified as unicellular eukaryotes. While there is no exact definition of the term "protozoan", most scientists use the word to refer to a unicellular heterotrophic protist, such as an amoeba or a ciliate....
, with over 16 known species. They are stalked inverted bell
Inverted bell

The inverted bell is a metaphorical name for geometric shape that resembles a bell upside down.In architecture, the term is applied, e.g., to describe the shape of the capital s of Corinthian order columns....
-shaped ciliate
Ciliate

The ciliates are a group of protists characterized by the presence of hair-like organelles called cilium, which are identical in structure to flagellum but typically shorter and present in much larger numbers with a different undulating pattern than flagella....
s, placed among the peritrich
Peritrich

The peritrichs are a large and distinctive group of ciliate protozoa. They are usually bell or disc shaped, with a prominent paroral membrane arising from the oral cavity and circling counter-clockwise around the anterior of the cell, accompanied by a smaller series of biological membrane....
s. Each cell has a separate stalk anchored onto the substrate, which contains a contracile fibril
Fibril

Fibril is a fine fiber approximately 1 Nanometre in diameter.Cytoplasmic fibrils are observed on the protoplasmic cylinders found in most spirochetal species, although no function of the cytoplasmic fibrils has been ascribed....
 called a myoneme. When stimulated this shortens, causing the stalk to coil like a spring. Vorticella mainly live in freshwater ponds and streams—generally anywhere protists are plentiful.

Reproduction is by budding
Budding

Budding is the formation of a new organism by the protrusion of part of another organism. This is very common in plants and fungi, but may be found in some animals as well, such as the Hydra ....
, where the cell undergoes longitudinal fission and only one daughter keeps the stalk.






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Vorticella is a genus of protozoa
Protozoa

Protozoan are microorganisms classified as unicellular eukaryotes. While there is no exact definition of the term "protozoan", most scientists use the word to refer to a unicellular heterotrophic protist, such as an amoeba or a ciliate....
, with over 16 known species. They are stalked inverted bell
Inverted bell

The inverted bell is a metaphorical name for geometric shape that resembles a bell upside down.In architecture, the term is applied, e.g., to describe the shape of the capital s of Corinthian order columns....
-shaped ciliate
Ciliate

The ciliates are a group of protists characterized by the presence of hair-like organelles called cilium, which are identical in structure to flagellum but typically shorter and present in much larger numbers with a different undulating pattern than flagella....
s, placed among the peritrich
Peritrich

The peritrichs are a large and distinctive group of ciliate protozoa. They are usually bell or disc shaped, with a prominent paroral membrane arising from the oral cavity and circling counter-clockwise around the anterior of the cell, accompanied by a smaller series of biological membrane....
s. Each cell has a separate stalk anchored onto the substrate, which contains a contracile fibril
Fibril

Fibril is a fine fiber approximately 1 Nanometre in diameter.Cytoplasmic fibrils are observed on the protoplasmic cylinders found in most spirochetal species, although no function of the cytoplasmic fibrils has been ascribed....
 called a myoneme. When stimulated this shortens, causing the stalk to coil like a spring. Vorticella mainly live in freshwater ponds and streams—generally anywhere protists are plentiful.

Reproduction is by budding
Budding

Budding is the formation of a new organism by the protrusion of part of another organism. This is very common in plants and fungi, but may be found in some animals as well, such as the Hydra ....
, where the cell undergoes longitudinal fission and only one daughter keeps the stalk. The free daughter becomes a telotroch
Telotroch

Telotroch is the free-swimming stage of members of the order Sessilida. Sessilida are ciliate protozoa of the subclass Peritrichia.A sessile individual can turn into a motile one to migrate to a better place....
, which swims until it finds suitable substrate to fix and develop its own stalk. They reproduce by fission. Also known as cell division. They are also capable of reproducing by conjugation. Conjugation is a form of sexual reproduction where two vorticella attach at the oral groove and swap DNA.

Other genera such as Carchesium resemble Vorticella but are branched or colonial.

Vorticellas sometimes stay in clusters. Some people learn these groups as colonies, but they are not true colonies because each vorticella has its own individual stalk. This allows the vorticella to detach from the cluster at any time.

Common species

  • Vorticella campanula
    Vorticella campanula

    Vorticella campanula is found in freshwater ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams with aquatic vegetation. It has a global distribution. Vorticella campanula is solitary and not colonial but usually social, several of them being found together....
     (most common)
  • Vorticella citrina
    Vorticella citrina

    Vorticella convallaria is a protozoan. It forms part of the Vorticella convallaria species complex. V. citrina is lemon yellow to light green in colour....
     
  • Vorticella communis
  • Vorticella convallaria
    Vorticella convallaria

    Vorticella convallaria is a protozoan, the type species of the genus Vorticella. It resembles Vorticella campanula, but differs in being somewhat narrow in the anterior end and usually having no refractile granules in the endoplasm....
  • Vorticella floridensis
  • Vorticella limnetis
  • Vorticella marina
  • Vorticella microstoma
  • Vorticella monilata
  • Vorticella patellina
  • Vorticella similis
  • Vorticella smaragdina
  • Vorticella sphaerica
  • Vorticella striata
  • Vorticella submicrostoma
  • Vorticella utriculus
vorticella
Vorticella Sequence


Image:Glockentierchen10x.ogg Image:Glockentierchen40x.ogg
Movies of Vorticella contracting and extending. Left: Vorticella campanula. Right: Probably Vorticella convallaria at higher magnification. For full resolution click first on image.