ROTIFERA

PHYLUM ROTIFERA

• Kingdom: Animalia
• Commonly called wheel animals
• Most are around 0.1-0.5mm long
• Common in freshwater and few saltwater

Rotifera

• described as a large maggot
• can contract then stretch out again
• taxonomy is a state of flux
• comes from the latin meaning "wheel-bearer"

rotifera

• bilateral symmetry
• variety of different shapes
• body divided into head trunk and foot

Rotifera

• well developed cuticle
• thick and rigid
• giving animal box like shape or flexible

classes and orders

• Bdelloidea and Ploimida
• Monogononta(largest) 
• Flosculariida and Seisonidea
• Ploimidia

MOVEMENT

• Some are free swimming and truly planktonic
• Some inch along a substrate
• Some are sessile living inside tubes attached to a substrate
• About 25 species are colonial, either sessile or planktonic

feeding and reproduction

•  Eat particulate organic detritus dead bacteria algae and protozoans
• Contribute to nutrient recycling
•  Used in fish tanks to help clean the water
• Reproduce sexually or parthenogenetically