Animalcule
Animalcule ("little animal", from Latin animal + the diminutive suffix -culum) is an older term for a microscopic animal or protozoan. Some better-known animalcules include:
- Actinophrys, and other heliozoa, called sun animalcules
- Amoeba, called Proteus animalcule
- Noctiluca scintillans, commonly called the 'Sea Sparkles'
- Paramecium, called slipper animalcules
- Rotifers, called wheel animalcules
- Stentor, called trumpet animalcules
- Vorticella, and other peritrichs, called bell animalcules
The term was also used by Anton van Leeuwenhoek, the 17th-century preformationist and the discoverer of microorganisms, to describe them.[1]
The word appears in adjectival form in the Major-General's Song, in which Major-General Stanley sings, "I know the scientific names of beings animalculous..."
References
- ↑ Buckley, Don MSc; Miller, Zipporah MA(Ed); Padilla, Michael J PhD; Thornton, Kathryn PhD; Wysession, Michael PhD (2012). Indiana Interactive Science Grade 7. p. 500.
See also
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