New ciliate in the Romanian Black Sea waters - Laboea strobila (protozoa, ciliophora, oligotrichia)

Abstract

The planktonic ciliates in the Romanian Black Sea waters have been little studied, although they have high ecological significance in the matter and energy flow of pelagic ecosystems. Among other common zooplankters, the protozoan Laboea strobila was identified for the first time in the shallow water area of the Romanian continental shelf in the spring of 2011. In the paper, the author presents data on the morphometry and distribution of this recently reported protozoan in the Black Sea.