The 18th chapter of the “Inhabitants of the microworld” series is called “Tiny bells”.
Ciliates of the genus Vorticella are among the most attractive and delicate protozoans. They are single celled organisms of no more than 80 micrometres in length (80 thousandths of a millimetre) and have a very slim peduncle able to contract in a spiral shape. With that peduncle Vorticella ciliates attach themselves to the substrate or to the small particles while filtering the water thanks to the currents created by the cilia located around their upper part. They are voracious predators of bacteria, thus we can consider them as important purifiers of the fresh waters.
This is the 18th chapter of a series that will bring to us a video per day during this confinement forced by COVID-19.
We hope that you enjoy this initiative, which gives access to a documentary series for free to the world, and you share it with everyone you think will possibly be interested.
Science into Images’s team.