Euchlanis Rotifer
Euchlanis dilatata is a common, transparent freshwater rotifer with a flexible, shield-like body that swims through weedy ponds and ditches around the world.
Euchlanis dilatata is a common, transparent freshwater rotifer with a flexible, shield-like body that swims through weedy ponds and ditches around the world.
🧬 Field Guide Specimen: Open Euchlanis Rotifer in the CRV Science Field Guide to log the specimen, see its place among the Lophotrochozoa lineages in the Cladogram Explorer, and test your recall in the Red List conservation game.
A Wheel of Cilia
A crown of beating cilia (the corona) draws algae and bacteria into the mouth and also moves the animal. Rotifers are among the smallest animals, with few cells and a fixed number in the adult.
A Pond Community Member
Euchlanis grazes on algae and detritus on plants. It is eaten by small crustaceans and fish fry. See Keratella Rotifer.
Resistant Eggs
Like other freshwater rotifers, it can produce resting eggs that survive when ponds dry up, and can reproduce asexually in good conditions. See Saltwater Wheel Rotifer.
Euchlanis Rotifer at a Glance
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Euchlanis dilatata |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Rotifera |
| Class | Eurotatoria |
| Order | Ploima |
| Family | Euchlanidae |
| Field Guide group | Lophotrochozoa: Worms, Shells & Allies |
| Diagnostic feature (Field Guide) | Microscopic transparent animal in a flattened shield-like case (lorica), with a ciliated crown whirling food into grinding jaws and a forked toe for gripping (microscope view). |
| Phylum | Rotifera |
| Habitat | Weedy freshwater |