This Rotifer buildsa little tube for protection. The video shows it's crown of cilia (the Corona)in motion. The hairlike cilia move so fast that it looks as if there aretwo rotating wheels. This is why they are also known as Wheel animalcules.The cilia sweep in food particles like bacteria. The video of Brachionus shows how the food is processed.

Limnias livesattached to a surface but many other Rotifers use their crown of cilia notonly for feeding but also for locomotion.

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© Wim van Egmond 1999