Rhabdostyla congregata ( Zacharias, 1903 )

Souza, Pedro Mendes De, Rossi, Mariana Fonseca & Dias, Roberto Júnio Pedroso, 2024, Systematic review of the genera Rhabdostyla Kent 1880 and Orborhabdostyla Foissner et al. 2010 (Ciliophora, Peritrichia, Epistylididae), Zootaxa 5399 (3), pp. 201-230 : 213

Rhabdostyla congregata ( Zacharias, 1903)

[ Rhabdostyla] (Rhabdostyla) congregata Zacharias, 1903 — Kahl, 1935: 676

Diagnosis: Size about 38–40 µm long and about 30 µm wide. Body shape like a small Epistylis , a little more rounded than other species. Stalk about 8–12 µm long. Smooth film, without streaks. Horseshoe-shaped macronucleus, found in the lower third of the body. One or two contractile vacuoles always present. Specimens found in large numbers, usually more than 25, on rotifers and rarely on crustaceans.

Remarks: Diagnosis according to Zacharias (1903) and Kahl (1935). Zacharias (1903) he accompanied the encystment of this species. Cyst about 32 and 28 µm wide. The wall of the cysts was very thick, about 2–3 thick, the surface of the cyst was not smooth, it had bumps. Dispersal processes were also reported, as some zooids in the group developed a telotrocal band, detached themselves from the basibiont, and sought new substrates.