"Clean-up crew", (Tetrahymena)

Charles Krebs · Post by **Charles Krebs** » Sun Feb 01, 2015 10:30 pm

I think we've all seen this at one time or another... an empty carapace of a dead crustacean that is packed with large numbers of ciliates very actively jostling around and feeding. Can anyone ID these. (I'm thinking Prorodon?)

EDIT: As you see below, Bruce helped out here. They are Tetrahymena. Interesting ciliate, worth a search and some reading.

Jacek · Post by **Jacek** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 6:30 am

I do not know but what great photos

vasselle · Post by **vasselle** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 9:19 am

Very nice photos
Cordialment seb

Bruce Taylor · Post by **Bruce Taylor** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 9:42 am

Wonderful images...like marble bas reliefs.

Some types of Prorodon do behave like this, but these guys are Tetrahymena (mouths are clearly visible in the last image).

A couple of articles on histophagous ("tissue eating," scavenger) varieties of Tetrahymena: http://link.springer.com/article/10.118 ... 1-5#page-1
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... x/abstract

carlos.uruguay · Post by **carlos.uruguay** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 10:38 am

Beautiful pictures and curious "cleaners" ciliates

Charles Krebs · Post by **Charles Krebs** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 11:11 am

Bruce.... thanks for putting a name on these.

A quick search or two shows they are quite interesting ciliates. Well studied, and useful in research.

Bruce Taylor · Post by **Bruce Taylor** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 11:24 am

Yes, they're lab rats.

discomorphella · Post by **discomorphella** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 2:15 pm

They are also nasty parasites for fish. Great shots of the swarms. They and Coleps and a few others are kind of the piranha of the protozoan world....swarming around stuff and devouring it. Albeit very small bites at a time.

David

RogelioMoreno · Post by **RogelioMoreno** » Mon Feb 02, 2015 5:40 pm

Beautiful set, love the details on last two.

Rogelio

Anatoly · Post by **Anatoly** » Tue Feb 03, 2015 12:04 am

Very nice photos.