rotifer

[ roh-tuh-fer ]

noun

1. any microscopic animal of the phylum (or class) Rotifera, found in fresh and salt waters, having one or more rings of cilia on the anterior end.

rotifer

/ rəʊˈtɪfərəl; ˈrəʊtɪfə /

noun

1. any minute aquatic multicellular invertebrate of the phylum Rotifera , having a ciliated wheel-like organ used in feeding and locomotion: common constituents of freshwater plankton Also calledwheel animalcule

rotifer

/ rō′tə-fər /

1. Any of various tiny, multicellular aquatic animals of the phylum Rotifera, having a wheel-like ring of cilia at their front ends. The cilia trap small organisms for food. Rotifers are grouped by some scientists together with nematodes and some other invertebrates as aschelminths.

Derived Forms

• rotiferal, adjective

Other Words From

• ro·tif·er·al [roh-, tif, -er-, uh, l], ro·tifer·ous adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of rotifer¹

From New Latin, dating back to 1785–95; Rotifera

Word History and Origins

Origin of rotifer¹

C18: from New Latin Rotifera , from Latin rota wheel + ferre to bear

Example Sentences

"Whereas Antarctic krill live in a place that is essentially unpopulated," says Xing, "we chose rotifers in part because they occur throughout the world's temperate and tropical zones, where people live."

From Science Daily

The researchers provide examples of using the protocol to test, for example, MNP toxicity in marine rotifers, freshwater mussels, daphnids and earthworms.

From Science Daily

Nematodes, copepods, rotifers and tardigrades also dig up and down, creating spaces for water to mix underground.

From Scientific American

But even that near-suspension of animation would have nothing on a rotifer: one of these microscopic animals, pulled out of Siberian permafrost, spent the past 25,000 years in a frozen nap before being reanimated.

From Scientific American

The bdelloid rotifer, a multicellular organism found in freshwater habitats across the world, is known to be able to withstand extreme cold.

From Washington Post