Atopochilodon distichum, Deroux, 1976

Pan, Hongbo, Jiang, Jiamei, Fan, Xinpeng, Al-Farraj, Saleh A. & Gao, Shan, 2017, Phylogeny and taxonomy of five poorly known species of cyrtophorian ciliates (Protozoa: Ciliophora: Phyllopharyngea) from China Seas, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 180, pp. 475-492 : 487

COMMENTS ON A. DISTICHUM

Atopochilodon distichum was originally described by Deroux (1976b) with detailed information on the infraciliature based on the Atlantic population ( Fig. 3E). Our population corresponds well with the original description, especially in terms of the cell size, shape, and ciliary pattern. The only difference is that our population has more right kineties (ten vs. eight). The slight variation in the somatic kineties usually occurs between different populations of cyrtophorids and should be an intraspecific difference.

To date, only two species belong to the genus Atopochilodon . Although the infraciliature of the type species, A. arenifer Kahl, 1933 , is unrevealed, A. distichum can be identified by its two cytoplasmic protrusions in the cell margin (vs. four) and its dorsal side covered by bacteria (vs. sands; Kahl, 1933).