A very large ciliate ID please

Olympusman · Post by **Olympusman** » Tue Dec 09, 2014 4:00 pm

480 microns across

jc maccagno · Post by **jc maccagno** » Tue Dec 09, 2014 4:03 pm

Good day

I suspect that this might be Nassula?

All the best

John

Bruce Taylor · Post by **Bruce Taylor** » Tue Dec 09, 2014 7:48 pm

Yes, probably Nassula ornata.

Olympusman · Post by **Olympusman** » Wed Dec 10, 2014 9:56 am

Thanks for the ID guys.

Mike

Bruce Taylor · Post by **Bruce Taylor** » Wed Dec 10, 2014 10:49 am

Mind you, without seeing the "nasse" ("fish basket" shaped feeding apparatus found in Nassula and its cousins), it's still just barely possible that this is a dorsal view of a very compressed Frontonia that's been eating nothing but cyanobacteria (they can take on a purplish hue, at times).

Size tends to be a weak character, for ciliates, but this guy is a real beast.

The biggest nassulids (Obertrumia, Nassula ornata, Enneameron etc.) don't normally exceed 300 µm.

Anyway, the next time you see one, look for the nasse.

Olympusman · Post by **Olympusman** » Wed Dec 10, 2014 3:06 pm

Bruce,
I've seen a number of these dead in my recent samples and I tracked this one while it was still alive until it died (I use Glutaraldehyde). All along it was perfectly ovoid.

A very large ciliate ID please

A very large ciliate ID please

Ciliate

Ciliate