A flagellate from a paddy field

After being collected from a paddy field, the sample was put on 1% agar plate with a drop of distilled water and kept in the dark for 4 days.

A green elliptic organism is moving around within a small area. Its surface is a shell (lorica) covered with spines.

Commentary by Prof. Yuji Tsukii, Hosei University
This organism is Trachelomonas crispa or a related species. One of the features of Trachelomonas crispa is that long spines surround the opening at the top where the flagellum comes out. The spines observed in this video are not the typical shape, so perhaps they have been damaged by the surrounding sand particles.

Sampling Date : 22 September 2006

Sampling Site : KASHIMADAI paddy field  Google Map