Under Construction

Pyxidicula Ehrenberg 1838

Ralf Meisterfeld and Edward Mitchell
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Containing group: Arcellidae

Introduction

Eight species, type species: Pyxidicula operculata (Agardh, 1827) Ehrenberg, 1838. Refs: Penard (1902), Doflein (1916), Ogden (1987a).

Characteristics

Shell hemispherical, bowl-shaped, the aperture is almost as wide as the diameter of the shell, apertural rim usually recurved outside. Shell wall areolate, composed of organic, hollow building units, which in older, brown specimens become filled with inorganic material like manganese. One vesicular nucleus. During mitosis the nuclear membrane and the nucleolus remain intact with an intranuclear spindle apparatus (closed orthomitosis). One contractile vacuole. Feeding: algae, bacteria.

Habitat: freshwater plants.

References

Doflein, F. 1916. Studien zur Naturgeschichte der Protozoen. VIII. Pyxidicula operculata (Agardh). Zool. Jb., 39:585-647.

Penard, E. 1902. Faune rhizopodique du Bassin de Léman. Kündig, Genève.

Ogden, C. G. 1987a. The fine structure of the shell of Pyxidicula operculata, an aquatic testate amoeba (Rhizopoda). Arch. Protistenk., 133:157-164.

Title Illustrations
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Scientific Name Pyxidicula operculata
Identified By Ralf Meisterfeld
Copyright ©
About This Page

This page is being developed as part of the Tree of Life Web Project Protist Diversity Workshop, co-sponsored by the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) program in Integrated Microbial Biodiversity and the Tula Foundation.


Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen, Germany

Edward Mitchell
University of Neuchâtel

Correspondence regarding this page should be directed to Ralf Meisterfeld at and Edward Mitchell at

All Rights Reserved.

Citing this page:

Meisterfeld, Ralf and Edward Mitchell. 2008. Pyxidicula Ehrenberg 1838. Version 02 September 2008 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Pyxidicula/124483/2008.09.02 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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