Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Testate amoebae analysis in ecological and paleoecological studies of wetlands: past, present and future

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Biodiversity and Conservation Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Testate amoebae are an abundant and diverse polyphyletic group of shelled protozoa living in aquatic to moist habitats ranging from estuaries to lakes, rivers, wetlands, soils, litter, and moss habitats. Owing to the preservation of shells in sediments, testate amoebae are useful proxy indicators complementary to long-established indicators such as pollen and spores or macrofossils. Their primary use to date has been for inferring past moisture conditions and climate in ombrotrophic peatlands and, to a lesser extent, to infer pH in peatlands and the trophic or nutrient status of lakes. Recent research on these organisms suggests other possible uses in paleoecology and ecology such as sea-level reconstruction in estuarine environments, as indicators of soil or air pollution, and monitoring recovery of peatland. We review the past and present use of testate amoebae, the challenges in current research, and provide some ideas on future research directions.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Balik V (1991) The effect of the road traffic pollution on the communities of testate amoebae (Rhizopoda, Testacea) in Warsaw (Poland). Acta Protozool 30:5–11

    Google Scholar 

  • Beyens L, Chardez D (1987) Evidence from testate amoebae for changes in some local hydrological conditions between c. 5000 BP and c. 3800 BP on Edgeøya (Svalbard). Polar Res 5:165–169

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Beyens L, Chardez D (1995) An annotated list of testate amoebae observed in the Arctic between the longitudes 27 degrees E and 168 degrees W. Arch Protistenkd 146:219–233

    Google Scholar 

  • Beyens L, Chardez D, Delandtsheer R, Debaere D (1986) Testate amoebae communities from aquatic habitats in the Arctic. Polar Biol 6:197–205

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blundell A, Barber K (2005) A 2800-year palaeoclimatic record from Tore Hill Moss, Strathspey, Scotland: the need for a multi-proxy approach to peat-based climate reconstructions. Quatern Sci Rev 24:1261–1277

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bobrov AA, Charman DJ, Warner BG (1999) Ecology of testate amoebae (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) on peatlands in western Russia with special attention to niche separation in closely related taxa. Protist 150:125–136

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bobrov AA, Mazei Y (2004) Morphological variability of testate amoebae (Rhizopoda: Testacealobosea: Testaceafilosea) in natural populations. Acta Protozool 43:133–146

    Google Scholar 

  • Boeuf O, Gilbert D (1997) Presence of testate amoebae (genus:Trinema), in the Upper Pliocene, discovered in the locality of Chilhac (Haute-Loire, France). Comptes rendus de l’academie des sciences Série II Fascicule a- Sciences de la Terre et des planetes 325:623–627

    Google Scholar 

  • Bonnet L (1958) Les thécamoebiens des Bouillouses. Bulletin de la Société d’Histoire Naturelle de Toulouse 93:529–543

    Google Scholar 

  • Bonnet L (1977) Thécamoebiens et potentialités truffières des sols. In: Communication de la 16ème Réunion du Groupement des Protistologues de Langue Française, 21 pp

  • Bonnet L (1979) Thécamoebiens Rhizopoda Testacea et potentialités truffières des sols. Nouvelles données. Mushroom Sci 10:1013–1038

    Google Scholar 

  • Booth RK (2001) Ecology of testate amoebae (Protozoa) in two lake superior coastal wetlands: implications for paleoecology and environmental monitoring. Wetlands 21:564–576

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Booth RK (2002) Testate amoebae as paleoindicators of surface-moisture changes on Michigan peatlands: modern ecology and hydrological calibration. J Paleolimnol 28:329–348

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Booth RK, Jackson ST (2003) A high resolution record of late-Holocene moisture variability from a Michigan raised bog, USA. The Holocene 13:863–876

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Booth RK, Jackson ST, Gray CED (2004) Paleoecology and high-resolution paleohydrology of a kettle peatland in upper Michigan. Quatern Res 61:1–13

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bovee EC (1985) Class Lobosea Carpenter, 1861. In: Lee JJ, Hutner SH, Bovee EC (eds) An illustrated guide to the protozoa. Allen University Press, Lawrence, Kansas, pp 158–211

    Google Scholar 

  • Burbidge SM, Schröder-Adams CJ (1998) Thecamoebians in Lake Winnipeg: a tool for Holocene paleolimnology. J Paleolimnol 19:309–328

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buttler A, Warner BG, Grosvernier P, Matthey Y (1996) Vertical patterns of testate amoebae (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) and peat forming vegetation on cutover bogs in the Jura, Switzerland. New Phytologist 134:371–382

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caseldine C, Gearey B (2005) A multiproxy approach to reconstructing surface wetness changes and prehistoric bog bursts in a raised mire system at Derryville Bog, Co. Tipperary, Ireland. The Holocene 15:585

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cash J, Wailes H (1915) The British Freshwater Rhizopoda and Heliozoa Ray Society, London

  • Cavalier-Smith T, Chao EE (1997) Sarcomonad ribosomal RNA sequences, rhizopod phylogeny, and the origin of euglyphid amoebae. Arch Protistenkd 147:227–236

    Google Scholar 

  • Chacharonis P (1954) Observations on the ecology of protozoa associated with Sphagnum. Dissertation, Ohio State University

  • Chacharonis P (1956) Observations on the ecology of protozoa associated with Sphagnum. J Protozool 3:11

    Google Scholar 

  • Chardez D (1969) Le genre Phryganella Penard (Protozoa, Rhizopoda, Testacea). Bulletin de la Station de Recherche Agronomique de Gembloux 4:315–322

    Google Scholar 

  • Chardez D (1989) On the multiplication of Centropyxis discoides and the medium influence on the morphology of the test (Rhizopoda Testacea). Acta Protozool 28:31–34

    Google Scholar 

  • Chardez D (1991) The Genus Cyphoderia Schlumberger, 1845 (Protozoa, Rhizopoda, Testacea). Acta Protozool 30:49–53

    Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ (1997) Modelling hydrological relationships of testate amoebae (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) on New Zealand peatlands. J Royal Soc NZ 27:465–483

    Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ (2001) Biostratigraphic and palaeoenvironmental applications of testate amoebae. Quatern Sci Rev 20:1753–1764

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ, Brown AD, Hendon D, Karofeld E (2004) Testing the relationship between Holocene peatland palaeoclimate reconstructions and instrumental data at two European sites. Quatern Sci Rev 23:137–143

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ, Caseldine C, Baker A, Gearey B, Hatton J, Proctor C (2001) Paleohydrological records from peat profiles and speleothems in Sutherland, northwest Scotland. Quatern Res 55:223–234

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ, Hendon D (2000) Long-term changes in soil water tables over the past 4500 years: relationships with climate and North Atlantic atmospheric circulation and sea surface temperature. Clim Change 47:45–59

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ, Hendon D, Packman S (1999) Multiproxy surface wetness records from replicate cores on an ombrotrophic mire: implications for Holocene palaeoclimate records. J Quatern Sci 14:451–463

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ, Hendon D, Woodland WA (2000) The identification of testate amoebae (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) in peats Quaternary Research Association, London

  • Charman DJ, Roe HM, Gehrels WR (1998) The use of testate amoebae in studies of sea-level change: a case study from the Taf Estuary, south Wales, UK. The Holocene 8:209–218

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ, Roe HM, Gehrels WR (2002) Modern distribution of saltmarsh testate amoebae: regional variability of zonation and response to environmental variables. J Quatern Sci 17:387–409

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ, Warner BG (1992) Relationship between testate amoebae (Protozoa, Rhizopoda) and microenvironmental parameters on a forested peatland in Northeastern Ontario. Can J Zool-Revue Canadienne De Zoologie 70:2474–2482

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charman DJ, Warner BG (1997) The ecology of testate amoebae (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) in oceanic peatlands in Newfoundland, Canada: modelling hydrological relationships for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. Ecoscience 4:555–562

    Google Scholar 

  • Chiverrell RC (2001) A proxy record of late Holocene climate change from May Moss, northeast England. J Quatern Sci 16:9–29

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clarholm M (1981) Protozoan grazing of bacteria in soil - Impact and importance. Microb Ecol 7:343–350

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clarholm M (1985) Interactions of bacteria, protozoa and plants leading to mineralization of soil nitrogen. Soil Biol Biochem 17:181–187

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Clarholm M (2002) Bacteria and protozoa as integral components of the forest ecosystem - their role in creating a naturally varied fertility. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek J Microbiol 81:309–318

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Clarhom M, Rosswall T (1980) Biomass and turnover of bacteria in a peat forest soil and a peat. Soil Biol Biochem 12:49–57

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Corbet SA (1973) An illustrated introduction to the testate rhizopods in Sphagnum, with special reference to the area around Malham Tarn, Yorkshire. Field Studies 3:801–838

    Google Scholar 

  • Coûteaux M-M, Pussard M (1983) Nature du régime alimentaire des protozoaires du sol. In: LeBrun P, André HM, De Medts A, Grégoire-Wibo C, Wauthy G (eds) new trends in soil biology, proceedings of the VIII. International colloquium of soil biology, Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium). pp 179–195

  • Dalby AP, Kumar A, Moore JM, Patterson RT (2000) Preliminary survey of arcellaceans (thecamoebians) as limnological indicators in tropical Lake Sentani, Irian Jaya, Indonesia. J Foraminiferal Res 30:135–142

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Darling KF, Kucera M, Pudsey CJ, Wade CM (2004) Molecular evidence links cryptic diversification in polar planktonic protists to Quaternary climate dynamics. Proc Nat Acad Sci USA 101:7657–7662

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Darling KF, Wade CM, Stewart IA, Kroon D, Dingle R, Brown AJL (2000) Molecular evidence for genetic mixing of Arctic and Antarctic subpolar populations of planktonic foraminfers. Nature 405:43–47

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Davis SR, Wilkinson DM (2004) The conservation management value of testate amoebae as ‘restoration’ indicators: speculations based on two damaged raised mires in northwest England. The Holocene 14:135–143

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deflandre G (1928) Le genre Arcella Ehrenberg. Morphologie-Biologie. Essai phylogénétique et systématiqe. Arch Protistenkd 64:152–287

    Google Scholar 

  • Deflandre G (1929) Le genre Centropyxis Stein. Arch Protistenkd 67:322–375

    Google Scholar 

  • Deflandre G (1936) Etude monographique sur le genre Nebela Leidy. Ann Protistol 5:201–286

    Google Scholar 

  • Dwyer RB, Mitchell FJG (1997) Investigation of the environmental impact of remote volcanic activity on North Mayo, Ireland, during the mid-Holocene. The Holocene 7:113–118

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Earle LR (2000) The development of an unusual peat-accumulating bofedal ecosystem in the Chilean Altiplano. M.Sc. thesis, University of Waterloo

  • Ellison RL (1995) Paleolimnological analysis of ullswater using testate amebas. J Paleolimnol 13:51–63

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Finlay BJ (2002) Global dispersal of free-living microbial eukaryote species. Science 296:1061–1063

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Finlay BJ, Clarke KJ (1999) Ubiquitous dispersal of microbial species. Nature 400:828

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Finlay BJ, Esteban GF, Clarke KJ, Olmo JL (2001) Biodiversity of terrestrial protozoa appears homogeneous across local and global spatial scales. Protist 152:355–366

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Finlay BJ, Esteban GF, Olmo JL, Tyler PA (1999) Global distribution of free-living microbial species. Ecography 22:138–144

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Finlay BJ, Fenchel T (1999) Global Diversity and body size. Answer to Siemann, Tilmann and Haarstad 1999. Nature 383:132–133

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foissner W (1997a) Global soil ciliate (Protozoa, Ciliophora) diversity: A probability-based approach using large sample collections from Africa, Australia and Antartica. Biodivers Conserv 6:1627–1638

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foissner W (1997b) Protozoa as bioindicators in agroecosystems, with emphasis on farming practices, biocides, and biodiversity. Agric Ecosyst Environ 62:93–103

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foissner W (1998) An updated compilation of world soil ciliates (Protozoa, Ciliophora), with ecological notes, new records, and descriptions of new species. Eur J Protistol 34:195–235

    Google Scholar 

  • Foissner W (1999) Protist diversity: estimates of the near-imponderable. Protist 150:363–368

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Foissner W, Korganova GA (1995) Redescription of 3 testate amebas (Protozoa, Rhizopoda) from a caucasian soil–centropyxis plagiostoma Bonnet and Thomas, cyclopyxis kahli (Deflandre) and cyclopyxis intermedia kufferath. Arch Protistenkd 146:13–28

    Google Scholar 

  • Foissner W, Korganova GA (2000) The Centropyxis aerophila complex (Protozoa: Testacea). Acta Protozool 39:257–273

    Google Scholar 

  • Foissner W, Schiller W (2001) Stable for 15 million years: scanning electron microscope investigation of Miocene euglyphid thecamoebians from Germany, with description of the new genus Scutiglypha. Eur J Protistol 37:167–180

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gehrels WR, Roe HM, Charman DJ (2001) Foraminifera, testate amoebae and diatoms as sea-level indicators in UK saltmarshes: a quantitative multiproxy approach. J Quatern Sci 16:201–220

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gilbert D, Amblard C, Bourdier G, Francez A-J (1998a) The microbial loop at the surface of a peatland: structure, function, and impact of nutrient input. Microb Ecol 35:83–93

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gilbert D, Amblard C, Bourdier G, Francez A-J, Mitchell EAD (2000) Le régime alimentaire des thécamoebiens. Annee Biol 39:57–68

    Google Scholar 

  • Gilbert D, Amblard C, Bourdier G, Francez AJ (1998b) Short-term effect of nitrogen enrichment on the microbial communities of a peatland. Hydrobiologia 374:111–119

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grospietsch T (1958) Wechseltierchen (Rhizopoden) Kosmos Verlag, Stuttgart

  • Grospietsch T (1964) Monographische Studie der Gattung Hyalosphenia Stein. Hydrobiologia 26:211–241

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harnisch O (1925) Studien zur Ökologie und Tiergeographie der Moore. Zoologisch Jahrbuch (Abteilung Systematik) 51:1–166

    Google Scholar 

  • Harnisch O (1927) Einige Daten zur recenten und fossilen testaceen Rhizopodenfauna der Sphagnen. Arch Hydrobiol 18:345–360

    Google Scholar 

  • Harnisch O (1958) II. Klasse: Wurzelfüssler, Rhizopoda. In: Brohmer P, Ehrmann P, Ulmer G (eds) Die Tierwelt Mitteleuropas, Band 1: Urtiere-Hohltiere-Würmer, Lieferung 1b. Quelle & Meier, Leipzig, pp 1–75

  • Hausmann K, Hülsmann N, Radek R (2003) Protistology, 3rd completely revised edition edn. E. Schweizerbart’sche Verlagsbuuchhandlung, Berlin, Stuttgart

  • Hayward BW, Holzmann M, Grenfell HR, Pawlowski J, Triggs CM (2004) Morphological distinction of molecular types in Ammonia–towards a taxonomic revision of the world’s most commonly misidentified foraminifera. Mar Micropaleontol 50:237–271

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heal OW (1961) The distribution of testate amoebae (Rhizopoda: Testacea) in some fens and mires in northern England. Zool J Linn Soc 44:369–382

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heal OW (1962) The abundance and microdistribution of testate amoebae (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) in Sphagnum. Oikos 13:35–47

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heal OW (1964) Observations on the seasonal and spatial distribution of testaceans (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) in Sphagnum. J Anim Ecol 33:395–412

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hendon D, Charman DJ (2004) High-resolution peatland water-table changes for the past 200 years: the influence of climate and implications for management. The Holocene 14:125–134

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hendon D, Charman DJ, Kent M (2001) Palaeohydrological records derived from testate amoebae analysis from peatlands in northern England: within-site variability, between-site comparability and palaeoclimatic implications. The Holocene 11:127–148

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jauhiainen S (2002) Testacean amoebae in different types of mire following drainage and subsequent restoration. Eur J Protistol 38:59–72

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jung W (1936) Thekamöben ursprünglischer lebender deutscher Hochmoore. Abhandlung Landesmuseum der Provinz Westfalen 7:1–87

    Google Scholar 

  • Kandeler E, Luftenegger G, Schwarz S (1992) Soil microbial processes and testacea (Protozoa) as indicators of heavy-metal pollution. Zeitschrift Fur Pflanzenernahrung Und Bodenkunde 155:319–322

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kumar A, Patterson RT (2000) Arcellaceans (thecamoebians): new tools for monitoring long- and short-term changes in lake bottom acidity. Environ Geol 39:689–697

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Laggoun-Défarge F, Mitchell EAD, Gilbert D, Warner BG, Comont L, Disnar J-R, Buttler A (2004) Biochemical characteristics of peat organic matter and distribution of testate amoebae in two naturally regenerating cutover Sphagnum peatlands of the Jura mountains. In: Proceedings of the 12th International Peat Congress, Vol. 1, pp 383–384, Tampere, Finland

  • Lambert J, Chardez D (1978) Intérêt criminalistique de la microfaune terrestre. Revue Internationale de Police criminelle 319:158–170

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamentowicz M, Mitchell EAD (2005) The ecology of testate amoebae (Protists) in Sphagnum in north-west Poland in relation to peatland ecology. Microb Ecol 39:290–300

    Google Scholar 

  • Langdon PG, Barber KE, Hughes PDM (2003) A 7500-year peat-based palaeoclimatic reconstruction and evidence for an 1100-year cyclicity in bog surface wetness from Temple Hill Moss, Pentland Hills, southeast Scotland. Quatern Sci Rev 22:259–274

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lavoie M, Richard PJH (2000) The role of climate on the developmental history of Frontenac Peatland, southern Quebec. Can J Bot-Revue Canadienne de Botanique 78:668–684

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee JJ, Leedale GF, Bradbury P (eds) (2000) An illustrated guide to the Protozoa, 2nd edn. Lawrence, Kansas, pp 1432

    Google Scholar 

  • Lloyd J (2000) Combined foraminiferal and thecamoebian environmental reconstruction from an isolation basin in NW Scotland: Implications for sea-level studies. J Foraminiferal Res 30:294–305

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loeblich AR, Tappan H (1964) Sarcodina. Chiefly “thecamoebians” and foraminiferida. In: Moore RC (ed) Treatise on invertebrate paleontology C(2), vol. 1. Geological Society of America and University of Kansas Press, Lawrence, Kansas, pp C2–C54

    Google Scholar 

  • Loranger G, Bandyopadhyaya I, Razaka B, Ponge JF (2001) Does soil acidity explain altitudinal sequences in collembolan communities? Soil Biol Biochem 33:381–393

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lussenhop J, Treonis A, Curtis PS, Teeri JA, Vogel CS (1998) Response of soil biota to elevated atmospheric CO2 in poplar model systems. Oecologia 113:247–251

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lüftenegger G, Petz W, Berger H, Foissner W, Adam H (1988) Morphologic and biometric characterization of 24 soil Testate Amebas (Protozoa, Rhizopoda). Arch Protistenkd 136:153–189

    Google Scholar 

  • Mauquoy D, Barber K (1999) Evidence for climatic deteriorations associated with the decline of Sphagnum imbricatum Hornsch ex Russ. in six ombrotrophic mires from northern England and the Scottish Borders. The Holocene 9:423–437

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mauquoy D, Barber K (2002) Testing the sensitivity of the palaeoclimatic signal from ombrotrophic peat bogs in northern England and the Scottish Borders. Rev Palaeobot Palynol 119:219–240

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCarthy FMG, Collins ES, McAndrews JH, Kerr HA, Scott DB, Medioli FS (1995) A comparison of postglacial Arcellacean (Thecamoebian) and pollen succession in Atlantic Canada, illustrating the potential of Arcellaceans for paleoclimatic reconstruction. J Paleontol 69:980–993

    Google Scholar 

  • McGlone MS, Wilmshurst JM (1999) A Holocene record of climate, vegetation change and peat bog development, east Otago, South Island, New Zealand. J Quatern Sci 14:239–254

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McMullen JA, Barber KE, Johnson B (2004) A paleoecological perspective of vegetation succession on raised bog microforms. Ecol Monograp 74:45–77

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Medioli FS, Scott DB, Collins ES, McCarthy FMG (1990) Fossil thecamoebians: present status and prospects for the future. In: Hemleben C, Kaminski MA, Kuhnt W, Scott DB (eds) Proceedings of the NATO advanced study institute on paleoecology, biostratigraphy, paleoceanography and taxonomy of agglutinated foraminifera, vol. 327, D. Reidel Publishing Company, Dordrecht-Boston, International, pp 813–839

    Google Scholar 

  • Meisterfeld R (1977) Die horizontale und vertikale Verteilung der Testaceen (Rhizopoda: Testacea) in Sphagnum. Arch Hydrobiolo 79:319–356

    Google Scholar 

  • Meisterfeld R (1978) Die Struktur von Testaceenzönosen (Rhizopoda, Testacea) in Sphagnum unter besonderer Berücksichtigung ihrer Diversität. Verhandlungen der Gesellschaft für Ökologie 7:441–450

    Google Scholar 

  • Meisterfeld R (1979) Cluster-Analysis of Associations of Testate Ameba (Rhizopoda, Testacea) in Sphagnum. Arch Protistenkd 121:270–307

    Google Scholar 

  • Meisterfeld R (2002a) Order Arcellinida Kent, 1880. In: Lee JJ, Leedale GF, Bradbury P (eds) The illustrated guide to the protozoa, vol. 2, Society of protozoologists, Lawrence, Kansas, USA, pp 827–860

    Google Scholar 

  • Meisterfeld R (2002b) Testate amoebae with filopodia. In: Lee JJ, Leedale GF, Bradbury P (eds) The illustrated guide to the protozoa, vol. 2. Society of protozoologists, Lawrence, Kansas, USA, pp 1054–1084

    Google Scholar 

  • Mignot JP, Raikov IB (1992) Evidence for meiosis in the Testate Ameba Arcella. J Protozool 39:287–289

    Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD (2004) Response of testate amoebae (Protozoa) to N and P fertilization in an Arctic wet sedge tundra. Arct Antarct Alp Res 36:77–82

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD, Borcard D, Buttler AJ, Grosvernier P, Gilbert D, Gobat JM (2000a) Horizontal distribution patterns of testate amoebae (Protozoa) in a Sphagnum magellanicum carpet. Microb Ecol 39:290–300

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD, Bragazza L, Gerdol R (2004) Testate Amoebae (Protista) Communities In Hylocomium splendens (Hedw.) B.S.G. (Bryophyta): relationships with altitude, and moss elemental chemistry. Protist 155:423–436

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD, Buttler A, Grosvernier P, Rydin H, Albinsson C, Greenup AL, Heijmans MMPD, Hoosbeek MR, Saarinen T (2000b) Relationships among testate amoebae (Protozoa), vegetation and water chemistry in five Sphagnum-dominated peatlands in Europe. New Phytologist 145:95–106

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD, Buttler AJ, Warner BG, Gobat JM (1999) Ecology of testate amoebae (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) in Sphagnum peatlands in the Jura mountains, Switzerland and France. Ecoscience 6:565–576

    Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD, Gilbert D (2004) Vertical micro-distribution and response to nitrogen deposition of Testate amoebae in Sphagnum. J Eukaryot Microbiol 51:485–495

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD, Gilbert D, Buttler A, Grosvernier P, Amblard C, Gobat J-M (2003) Structure of microbial communities in Sphagnum peatlands and effect of atmospheric carbon dioxide enrichment. Microb Ecol 46:187–199

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD, Meisterfeld R (2005) Taxonomic confusion blurs the debate on cosmopolitanism versus local endemism of free-living protists. Protist 156:263–267

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell EAD, van der Knaap WO, van Leeuwen JFN, Buttler A, Warner BG, Gobat JM (2001) The palaeoecological history of the Praz-Rodet bog (Swiss Jura) based on pollen, plant macrofossils and testate amoebae (Protozoa). The Holocene 11:65–80

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moraczewski J (1962) Differenciation ecologique de la faune des Testacés du littoral peu profond du lac Mamry. Pol Arch Hydrobiol 10:334–353

    Google Scholar 

  • Nguyen-Viet H, Bernard N, Mitchell EAD, Cortet J, Badot P-M, Gilbert D (2007) Relationship between testate amoebae and atmospheric heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Zn, Ni, Cu, Mn and Fe) accumulated in the moss Barbula indica Hanoi, Vietnam. Microb Ecol 53:53–65

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nguyen-Viet H, Gilbert D, Bernard N, Mitchell EAD, Badot P-M (2004) Relationship between atmospheric pollution characterized by NO2 concentrations and testate amoebae abundance and diversity. Acta Protozool 43:233–239

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nikolaev SI, Mitchell EAD, Petrov NB, Berney C, Fahrni J, Pawlowski J (2005) The testate lobose amoebae (order Arcellinida Kent, 1880) finally find their home within Amoebozoa. Protist 156:191–202

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Odum EP (1971) Fundamentals of ecology, 3rd edn. W. B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia

    Google Scholar 

  • Ogden CG (1983) Observations on the systematics of the genus Difflugia in Britain (Rhizopoda, Protozoa). Bull Nat Hist Mus Zool 44:1–73

    Google Scholar 

  • Ogden CG, Hedley RH (1980) An atlas to freshwater testate amoebae. Oxford University Press, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Patterson DJ (1996) Free-living freshwater Protozoa: a colour guide. Manson Publishing Ltd., London

    Google Scholar 

  • Patterson RT, Dalby A, Kumar A, Henderson LA, Boudreau REA (2002) Arcellaceans (thecamoebians) as indicators of land-use change: Settlement history of the Swan Lake area, Ontario as a case study. J Paleolimnol 28:297–316

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patterson RT, Kumar A (2002) A review of current testate rhizopod (thecamoebian) research in Canada. Palaeogeograp Palaeoclimatol Palaeoecol 180:225–251

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Penard E (1902) Les Rhizopodes du bassin du Léman Kündig, Genève

  • Porter SM, Knoll AH (2000) Testate amoebae in the Neoproterozoic Era: Evidence from vase- shaped microfossils in the Chuar Group, Grand Canyon. Paleobiology 26:360–385

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Primeau S (2004) Coastal freshwater wetland development in Mexico: A 4,500 -year record of succession from Laguna La Mancha, Vera Cruz. M.Sc. Thesis, University of Waterloo

  • Quinn NP (2003) Testate amoebae (Protozoa) assemblages as environmental indicators of water tables and soil moisture in a kettle hole peatland in southern Ontario. M.Sc. Thesis, University of Waterloo

  • Reinhardt EG, Dalby A, Kumar A, Patterson RT (2001) Utility of arcellacean morphotypic variants as pollution indicators in mine tailing contaminated lakes near Cobalt, Ontario, Canada. Micropaleontology 47:95–95

    Google Scholar 

  • Roe HM, Charman DJ, Gehrels WR (2002) Fossil testate amoebae in coastal deposits in the UK: implications for studies of sea-level change. J Quatern Sci 17:411–429

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruzicka E (1982) Die subfossile Testaceen des Krottensees (Salzburg, Oesterreich). Limnologica (Berlin) 1:49–88

    Google Scholar 

  • Schmidt AR, von Eynatten H, Wagreich M (2001) The Mesozoic amber of Schliersee (southern Germany) is Cretaceous in age. Cretaceous Res 22:423–428

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schreve DC, Thomas GN (2001) Critical issues in European quaternary biostratigraphy. Quatern Sci Rev 20:1577–1582

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W (1962) Zur Ökologie der sphagnicolen, bryokolen un terrikolen Testaceen. Limnologica 1:231–254

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W (1963) Die Stratigraphie lebender Testaceen im Sphagnetum der Hochmoore. Limnologica 1:315–321

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W (1965a) Die Sedimentbewohnenden Testaceen einiger Masurischer Seen. Acta Protozool 3:297–309

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W (1965b) Studien über die Gattung Difflugiella (Rhizopoda, Testacea). Limnologica 3:315–328

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W (1966) Testaceen als Bioindikatoren im System der Seetypen Untersuchungen in Masurischen Seen und im Suwaki-Gebiet (Polen). Limnologica 4:1–11

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W (1973) Paleolimnological studies of Testacea from Lake-Latnjajaure (Abisko-Region-Swedish-Lapland). Hydrobiologia 42:63–75

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W (1992a) Adaptive polymorphism in soil-inhabiting testate amoebae (Rhizopoda): its importance for delimitation and evolution of asexual species. Arch Protistenkd 142:139–155

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W (1992b) The role of protozoan communities in freshwater and soil ecosystems. Acta Protozool 31:11–18

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W, Dorfelt H, Foissner W, Krienitz L, Schafer U (1999) A fossilized microcenosis in Triassic amber. J Eukary Microb 46:571–584

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W, Flossner D, Proft G (1965) Die Limnologische Characterisirung des Profundals einiger Seen mit Hilfe von Testaceen-Geimenschaften. Limnologica 3:371–380

    Google Scholar 

  • Schönborn W, Foissner W, Meisterfeld R (1983) Light and SEM studies of the shell morphology and formation of races in soil-living Testacea–Proposals of a biometrical characterization of Testacea shells. Protistologica 19:553–566

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott DB, Medioli FS (1983) Agglutinated rhizopods in Lake Erie: modern distribution and stratigraphic implications. J Paleontol 57:809–820

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott DB, Medioli FS, Schafer CT (2001) Monitoring in coastial environments using foraminifera and thecoamoebian indicators. Cambridge Unversity Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith HG (1992) Distribution and ecology of the testate rhizopod fauna of the continental Antarctic zone. Polar Biol 12:629–634

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith HG (1996) Diversity of Antarctic terrestrial protozoa. Biodivers Conserv 5:1379–1394

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Todorov M (1998) Observation on the soil and moss testate amoebae (Protozoa: Rhizopoda) from Pirin Mountain (Bulgaria). Acta Zool Bulgarica 50:19–29

    Google Scholar 

  • Tolonen K (1986) Rhizopod analysis. In: Berglund BE (ed) Handbook of holocene palaeoecology and palaeohydrology. John Wiley and Sons, Chichester, pp 645–666

    Google Scholar 

  • Tolonen K, Warner BG, Vasander H (1992) Ecology of testaceans (Protozoa, Rhizopoda) in mires in Southern Finland.1. Autecology. Arch Protistenkd 142:119–138

    Google Scholar 

  • Tolonen K, Warner BG, Vasander H (1994) Ecology of Testaceans (Protozoa, Rhizopoda) in Mires in Southern Finland.2. Multivariate-Analysis.Arch Protistenkd 144:97–112

    Google Scholar 

  • Treonis AM, Lussenhop JF (1997) Rapid response of soil protozoa to elevated CO2. Biol Fertil Soils 25:60–62

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Van Oye P (1944) Au sujet de la distribution géographique des Rhizopodes. Biologisch Jaarboek 11:83–91

    Google Scholar 

  • Vickery E, Charman DJ (2004) Biomonitoring of peatland restoration using testate amoebae. In: Verhoeven JTA, Dorland E, Coemans M (eds) 7th INTECOL international wetlands conference, vol. Book of abstracts, Utrecht, NL, 25–30 July 2004, pp 342

  • Wanner M (1999) A review on the variability of testate amoebae: Methodological approaches, environmental influences and taxonomical implications. Acta Protozool 38:15–29

    Google Scholar 

  • Wanner M, Dunger W (2001) Biological activity of soils from reclaimed open-cast coal mining areas in Upper Lusatia using testate amoebae (protists) as indicators. Ecol Eng 17:323–330

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wanner M, Dunger W (2002) Primary immigration and succession of soil organisms on reclaimed opencast coal mining areas in eastern Germany. Eur J Soil Biol 38:137–143

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wanner M, Esser S, Meisterfeld R (1994) Effects of light, temperature, fertilizers and pesticides on growth of the common freshwater and soil species Cyclopyxis Kahli (Rhizopoda, Testacealobosia), interactions and adaptations. Limnologica 24:239–250

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wanner M, Meisterfeld R (1994) Effects of some environmental factors on the shell morphology of testate amoebae (Rhizopoda, Protozoa). Eur J Protistol 30:191–195

    Google Scholar 

  • Warner BG (1987) Abundance and diversity of testate amoebae (Rhizopoda, Testacea) in Sphagnum peatlands in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Arch Protistenkd 133:173–189

    Google Scholar 

  • Warner BG (1990) Testate Amoebae (Protozoa). In: Warner BG (ed) methods in Quaternary ecology, vol. Reprint Series 5. Geoscience Canada, St. John’s, Newfoundland, pp 65–74

  • Warner BG, Asada T, Quinn NP (2007) Seasonal influences on the ecology of testate amoebae (Protozoa) in a small Sphagnum peatlands in southern Ontario, Canada. Microb Ecol 54:91–100

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Warner BG, Charman DJ (1994) Holocene changes on a Peatland in Northwestern Ontario interpreted from Testate Amebas (Protozoa) analysis. Boreas 23:270–279

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Warner BG, Chmielewski JG (1992) Testate amoebae (Protozoa) as indicators of drainage in a forested mire, northern Ontario, Canada. Arch Protistenkd 141:179–183

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilkinson DM (1994) A review of the biogeography of the protozoan genus Nebela in the southern temperate and Antarctic zones. Area 26:150–157

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilkinson DM (2001) What is the upper size limit for cosmopolitan distribution in free-living microorganisms? J Biogeograp 28:285–291

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilmshurst JM, McGlone MS, Charman DJ (2002) Holocene vegetation and climate change in southern New Zealand: linkages between forest composition and quantitative surface moisture reconstructions from an ombrogenous bog. J Quatern Sci 17:653–666

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Woodland WA, Charman DJ, Sims PC (1998) Quantitative estimates of water tables and soil moisture in Holocene peatlands from testate amoebae. The Holocene 8:261–273

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wylezich C, Meisterfeld R, Meisterfeld S, Schlegel M (2002) Phylogenetic analyses of small subunit ribosomal RNA coding regions reveal a monophyletic lineage of euglyphid testate amoebae (order Euglyphida). J Eukary Microbiol 49:108–118

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

Edward Mitchell is supported by Swiss NSF project n° 205321-109709/1 and was supported by EU project RECIPE, partly funded by the European Commission (n° EVK2-2002-00269) and partly, for the Swiss partners, by the State Secretariat for Education and Research, Switzerland. SEM illustrations were produced at the SEM lab of the University of Alaska Anchorage under the direction of Dr. Jerry Kudenov. Jan Pawlowski of the University of Geneva provided critical comments on parts of the manuscript. The critical comments of two anonymous reviewers on the manuscript are gratefully acknowledged.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Wetlands Research Group, Station 2, Lausanne, CH-1015, Switzerland

    Edward A. D. Mitchell

  2. EPFL, Laboratoire des Systèmes Écologiques (ECOS), Station 2, Lausanne, CH-1015, Switzerland

    Edward A. D. Mitchell

  3. School of Geography, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, Devon, PL4 8AA, UK

    Daniel J. Charman

  4. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada, N2L 3G1

    Barry G. Warner

Authors
  1. Edward A. D. Mitchell
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Daniel J. Charman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Barry G. Warner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Edward A. D. Mitchell.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mitchell, E.A.D., Charman, D.J. & Warner, B.G. Testate amoebae analysis in ecological and paleoecological studies of wetlands: past, present and future. Biodivers Conserv 17, 2115–2137 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-007-9221-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-007-9221-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation