Bio*Pedia is a repository of descriptions of organisms. Information entered here will be harvested by the Encyclopedia of Life. The material will be reviewed and if inappropriate or inaccurate, may not be included in EOL.
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Bio*Pedia is a repository of descriptions of organisms and a partner of the Encyclopedia of Life (EOL). Descriptions added to Bio*Pedia will be harvested at regular intervals, and will appear on EOL species pages.1
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Type the scientific name of the species that you wish to add a description to (without author and year) into the search box, select and jump to the species name, and click on the "Add description" link in the upper left corner of the page. Type your description into the lower (yellow) box, choose the appropriate license, click "Save description", and your description will immediately appear in Bio*Pedia, which means that it is on the way to EOL!1
1Please note that your description will not appear immediately on EOL Species Pages. If submitted descriptions are deemed inappropriate or inaccurate, they may not be included in EOL.
Description of Oxytricha:
Species of this hypotrich ciliate are 40 to 260 microns long and are flexible. The genus is elongated, ovoid and dorso-ventrally flattened, with a flat ventral surface and arched dorsal surface. The oral cavity expands from the cytostome anteriorly. A pronounced adoral zone of membranelles extends from the cytostome along the left side of the cell and across the anterior end of the cell. The genus is very similar to Cyrtohymena and Notohymena. Two undulating membranes (one paroral and one endoral membrane) follwing a slightly curving path along the right side of the oral depression; in ventrally viewed silver stained cells the kineties of these two membranes usually cross. There are two marginal rows of somatic cirri which are not continuous at the posterior. The genus exhibits the typical oxytrichid ventral cirri pattern (8 frontal, 5 ventral and 4 or more transverse cirri). Usually, three caudal cirri extend from the posterior end. Typically two macronuclei are located in the central of the cell.
A search that checks against common names and lexical variants.
Example: A search for "Pomatomus saltator" will check presence in the tree of "Pomatomus sallatrix", "Pomatomus saltator", or "Pomatomus saltatrix".
A search that checks against common names and lexical variants and homotypic variants.
Example: A search for "Pomatomus saltator" will check presence in the tree of "Cheilodipterus saltatrix", "Gasterosteus saltatrix", "Pomatomix saltatrix", "Pomatomus sallatrix", "Pomatomus saltator", "Pomatomus saltatrix", or "Temnodon saltator".
