Saccamoeba wakulla (Bovee, 1972)
Most likely ID: n.a.
Synonym: n.a.
Sampling location: Simmelried
Phylogenetic tree: n.a.
Diagnosis:
- locomotion monopodial, polypodial when changing direction
- length up to 130 µm, sometimes up to 175 µm
- distinct hyaline cap during locomotion
- hyaline cap finely granulated
- numerous crystals in cytoplasm, 1–3.5 µm
- nucleus (3.5–6.5 µm) with central nucleolus
- wrinkled villous-bulb uroid
- one or several contractile vacuoles near uroid
So far I have only found one specimen of Saccamoeba wakulla in November 2016 in the Simmelried. The different species of the genus Saccamoeba were defined by Page (1976) essentially by the presence and number of crystals in the cytoplasm. In my specimen, a large number of highly refractive crystals were present in the cytoplasm, which had a maximum diameter of 3 µm. This is characteristic of Saccamoeba wakulla.
Like the other species of the genus Saccamoeba, Saccamoeba walkulla has a villous uroid, a central nucleolus in the nucleus and the hyaline cap is not completely clear but contains very small particles, making it appear finely granulated.
Fig. 1 a-f: Saccamoeba wakulla. L = 82 µm. A specimen in monopodial locomotion. Note the villose uroid (UR) and the finely granulated, hyaline cap (HC). The cytoplasm is filled with highly refractive crystals (CR) with a diameter of 0.7– 3 µm. CV = contractile vacuole, Nu = nucleus, Nuc = nucleolus. Obj. 100 X.