Sphaeroeca volvox Lauterborn, 1894

Sphaeroeca volvox, although this species is found very often in plankton (location: 1;2;3), the specimens shown here were found in a treehole (see location (4) below). Focus plane on the flagella, which are about 30-40 µm long. In contrast to bicosoecid protists like for example Bicosoeca petiolata (with two heterokont flagella) the species Sphaeroca volvox belongs to the Choanoflagellates, and each cell has only one flagellum (see also image below).

 
Sphaeroeca volvox, compressed colony, in some of the single cells the cilia of the flagellated collar are visible (arrowheads). The arrow points to a the nucleus of one of the cells. (4)
 
Sphaeroeca volvox, compressed colony; focus plane on some of the thin filaments at the posterior end of the cells (some of them marked by arrowheads). In contrast to bicosoecid protists like for example Bicosoeca petiolata (with two heterokont flagella) each cell of Sphaeroca volvox has only one flagellum. (3)
 
Sphaeroeca volvox, specimen from plankton (1)
 
Sphaeroeca volvox, colony from (2); (plankton)
Location: Gevelsberg, NRW, Germany; Grünes Klassenzimmer, pond (1); Herne/ Wanne; NRW, Germany; pond. (2); Hasslinghausen-Sprockhövel, IG-Metall-Bildungszentrum, pond (3)
Habitat: plankton (1);(2); (3)
Date: 08.08.2006 (1); 25.03.2010 (2); 10.05.2019 (3)
 
 
 
 
Location (4): Hattingen-Oberstüter, NRW, Germany, forest
Habitat (4): treehole, detritus; together with the ciliate Sathrophilus vernalis
Date (4): 25.02.2021
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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