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Heterotrichea: Heterotrichida: Spirostomatidae

Spirostomum ambiguum
Ehrenberg, 1838
Syn. Spirostomum minutus Roux, 1901

Spirostomum ambiguum Genus: Body blunt at rear; kineties spiralled when body contracts (Illustrated Guide, 1985).
Species: 1-3 mm long (without expansion or attenuation); peristome 2/3 body length; macronucleus moniliform; size and the length of the peristome separate this species from S. intermedium (600 μm long , peristome1/2 the body length) (Carey, 1992).


Spirostomum ambiguum, cell body 1200 μm long, 100 μm wide, x 56?, x 100, x 200, Uruguay, November 1999, photo by Y. Tsukii
scale 358 μm scale 716 μm scale 1074 μm; x 56
Spirostomum ambiguum Spirostomum ambiguum
scale 200 μm scale 400 μm scale 600 μm; x 100
Spirostomum ambiguum Spirostomum ambiguum
scale 100 μm scale 200 μm scale 300 μm; x 200
Spirostomum ambiguum

Spirostomum ambiguum, cell body 1160 μm long, 84 μm wide, peristome 920 μm long (more than 3/4 of the body length), x 100, x 200, x 400?, Uruguay, November 1999, photo by Y. Tsukii
scale 200 μm scale 400 μm scale 600 μm; x 100
Spirostomum ambiguum Spirostomum ambiguum Spirostomum ambiguum
scale 100 μm scale 200 μm scale 300 μm; x 200
Spirostomum ambiguum Spirostomum ambiguum
scale 50 μm scale 100 μm scale 150 μm; x 400
Spirostomum ambiguum


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