''Trinema'' is a genus of testate amoeba in the phylum

Cercozoa Cercozoa (now synonymised with Filosa) is a phylum of diverse single-celled eukaryotes. They lack shared morphological characteristics at the microscopic level, and are instead united by phylogeny, molecular phylogenies of rRNA and actin or Ubiqu ...

. It includes the species '' Trinema lineare''. Species of ''Trinema'' are common in freshwater and terrestrial habitats.

Description

''Trinema'' is a testate amoeba: a type of

amoeba An amoeba (; less commonly spelled ameba or amœba; : amoebas (less commonly, amebas) or amoebae (amebae) ), often called an amoeboid, is a type of Cell (biology), cell or unicellular organism with the ability to alter its shape, primarily by ...

that produces a protective outer shell, called a test. Tests are made of two different types of scales: large circular plates and smaller plates overlapping between them. The aperture (the hole through which the

pseudopodia A pseudopod or pseudopodium (: pseudopods or pseudopodia) is a temporary arm-like projection of a eukaryotic cell membrane that is emerged in the direction of movement. Filled with cytoplasm, pseudopodia primarily consist of actin filaments and ...

emerge) is circular, near the end of the test, and surrounded by toothed apertural scales. ''Trinema'' is a filose amoeba, meaning it moves via

filopodia Filopodia (: filopodium) are slender cytoplasmic projections that extend beyond the leading edge of lamellipodia in migrating cells. Within the lamellipodium, actin ribs are known as ''microspikes'', and when they extend beyond the lamellipod ...

. Species are distinguished based on the size and shape of the test and aperture. Species show considerable variation in morphological characteristics, which makes them more difficult to identify.

References

Imbricatea Rhizaria genera {{Cercozoa-stub