| Aspelta circinator, dorsoventral view, two light refracting bodies are visible in the rostrum (arrowheads). (1) |
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| Aspelta circinator, ventral view, focus plane on the ciliary field (1). |
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| Aspelta cf. circinator, lateral view; specimen from (2) |
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| Aspelta cf. circinator, dorsoventral view, a species with inward bent toes. Therefore this species might be confused with Dicranophorus secretus at the first glance. In the head the light refracting bodies of the eyespots are visible. (2) |
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| Aspelta cf. circinator, forcipate trophi of a macerated specimen. In comparison with the literature the shape of the right uncus looks more like the one from Aspelta labri (2) |
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| Aspelta circinator, specimen from (3) |
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| Aspelta circinator, specimen from (4); in contact with the rotiferophagous fungus Zoophagus sp.. The head/ corona of Aspelta is retracted (see images below). Reaction to the contact with the fungus??? |
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| Aspelta circinator, the same specimen has engulfed a Lepadella rotifer, a species which is caught by Zoophagus insidians very often. Head of Aspelta retracted. So it is posiible that this Aspelta-specimen has either caught the Lepadella specimen that had been caught by Zoophagus first, or Aspelta swallowed the Lepadella specimen first and then swallowed the fungus afterwards. (4) |
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| Aspelta circinator, same specimen, compressed by coverslide. From this image the question arises: how can these relative small forcipate trophi (arrow) of Aspelta manage to engulf this relative big Lepadella-prey (shape marked by arrowheads)?. (4) |
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| Aspelta circinator, same specimen; detail of the contact of the fungus and the rotifer(s). (4) |
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| Aspelta circinator, trophi (4) |
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| Location: Wahner Heide near Cologne (1); Ohligser Heide , Germany (2); Ohligser Heide, Germany (2); Plabennec, Brittany, France; lake (3); |
| Habitat: Sphagnum pond (1,2); between alge / detritus (3) |
| Date: 2012 (1);23.10.2015 (2); 12.08.2019 (3) |
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Location (4) : Stang-Alar; Botanical Garden, Brest; Brittany, France |
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| Habitat (4) : detritus/ psammon in lotic water (click to enlarge >>>>) |
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| Date: coll.18.08.2021; img.: 23.08.2021 (4) |
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