vorticella

Vor`ti*cel"la, n.; pl. E. Vorticellas (, L. Vorticellæ (. Etym: [NL., dim. fr. L. vortex. See Vortex.] (Zoöl.) Defn: Any one of numerous species of ciliated Infusoria belonging to Vorticella and many other genera of the family Vorticellidæ. They have a more or less bell-shaped body with a circle of vibrating cilia around the oral disk. Most of the species have slender, contractile stems, either simple or branched.

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