Free-living ciliates from the coastal area of Lake Tanganyika (Africa)

Lake Tanganyika is world famous for a fauna that is rich in endemic species. On the other hand, it seems to be particularly poor in species of planktonic ciliates. Only the coastal infusorial fauna, for the most part mesopsammic, constitutes an extensive biomass with relatively few species. However, some are characteristic ( Planicoleps psammophilus n.g., n.sp. Frontonia tanganyikae n.sp.). In these cases, one can speak of endemism.