Portrait

Description :

Portrait of the haptorid ciliate, Chaenea teres (Dujardin,1841). Probably synonymous with C. stricta (Dujardin 1841, Foissner, 1995) which is also found in freshwater habitats. The cell is elongate,ovoid in cross section,flexible but only slightly contractile. There is a short anterior snout with an inconspicuous apical cytostome. Small trichites support the cytopharynx. Longitudinal somatic kineties are widely spaced. The short snout has densely packed slightly spiral kineties with longer cilia. There is a single posterior terminal contractile vacuole (not seen in this image). The macronucleus is in many small rounded parts throughout the cytoplasm. The cytoplasm of this individual contains multiple highly refractile crystalline inclusions.This specimen was collected from a commercial saltwater aquarium in Boise, Idaho May 2004. DIC optics.