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A short sequence showing some feeding aspects of the rotifer Collotheca ornata, found in a pond. Rotifers are amazingly beautiful semi transparent microscopic animals. Rotifers are found throughout the world and are a common component of clean freshwater bodies, such as ponds and lakes. Found attached to plant material, rotifers feed by expanding a structure known as a corona, which is covered (in the species seen here) by numerous cilia (hair-like structures). These cilia beat to create water currents that sweep food (microscopic algae) into the mouth. The can be sessile (fixed to a substrate) as seen here or free swimming. These ones are are over 500 species found in the United Kingdom. They take their name from the word Rota, meaning wheel, as many possess a corona that appears as a wheel like structure(s) covered in cilia.
