Feeding Strategies
The dinoflagellates include autotrophs, phagotrophs, symbionts and parasites; photosynthetic species (autotrophs) account for about half of living genera, with the other half being nonphotosynthetic. Completely autotrophic species are however very rare. Some taxa have more than one nutritional strategy (mixotrophic): for example, species of Protoperidinium are both parasitic and photosynthetic.
Food inclusions contain bacteria, bluegreen algae, small dinoflagellates, diatoms, ciliates and other dinoflagellates.
Mechanisms of capture and ingestion in dinoflagellates are quite diverse. Several dinoflagellates, both thecate (e.g. Ceratium hirundinella,; Peridinium globulus,) and nonthecate (e.g. Oxyrrhis marina,; Gymnodinium sp.,; and Kofoidinium spp.,), draw prey to the sulcal region of the cell (either via water currents set up by the flagella or via pseudopodial extensions) and ingest the prey through the sulcus. Protoperidinium conicum extrudes a large feeding veil to capture prey which is subsequently digested extracellularly. Katodinium (Gymnodinium) fungiforme, commonly found as a contaminant in algal or ciliate cultures, feeds by attaching to its prey and ingesting prey cytoplasm through an extensible peduncle. The feeding mechanisms of the oceanic dinoflagellates remain unknown, although pseudopodial extensions were observed in Podolampas bipes.
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