Hawaiian Records of Folliculinids (Protozoa) from Submerged Wood 1 
Donald C. Matthews 2 
ABSTRACT: To folliculinids in Hawaii, taken from naturally submerged objects 
( Halofolliculina annulata, Ascobius simplex, Metafolliculina andrewsi) and from 
submerged glass-plate panels ( Metafolliculina nordgardi, Parafolliculina violaceae ) , 
are added those from Douglas fir panels riddled by subsistent teredines and 
Limnoria: Eufolliculina lignicola, Mirofolliculina limnoriae, and Lagotia viridis. 
Variations in loricae and moniliform nuclear components are illustrated and 
discussed. 
Thus far five species of folliculinids embracing 
four genera have been recorded for Hawaii 
(Matthews, 1962). Of these, Halofolliculina 
annulata, Lagotia simplex, and Metafolliculina 
andrewsi were taken from submerged naturally- 
occurring objects, whereas Metafolliculina nord- 
gardi and Parafolliculina violaceae were taken 
from submerged glass-plate panels. 
Douglas fir ( Pseudotsuga taxi folia?) frames 
supporting these panels (Matthews, 1962, fig. 
1), subsequently honeycombed by subsistent 
teredines and Limnoria, were broken apart; the 
tortuous burrows and their sequestered organ- 
isms revealed the folliculinids recorded here. 
Folliculina lignicola, Faure-Fremiet 1936, La 
famille des Folliculinidae. Mem. Mus. 
d’Hist. Nat. de Belg. (Ser. 2), 3: 1129-1175. 
Eufolliculina lignicola, Hadzi 1951. 
This slender folliculinid (reassigned by Hadzi 
[1951] to Eufolliculina lignicola [Faure-Fre- 
miet}) was abundant in tracheids opened by 
burrowing gribbles. In riddled wood frames 
examined November 21, 1961 (corroborated 
January 11, 1962) E. lignicola was the most 
abundant, although not the most sequestered, 
folliculinid. In fact, just outside the burrows, 
1 Contribution No. 196, Hawaii Marine Laboratory, 
University of Hawaii, Honolulu. Manuscript received 
March 28, 1962. 
a Department of Zoology, University of Hawaii, 
Honolulu. 
attached especially to calcareous tubes of ser- 
pulid worms ( Spirobis sp. and Mercierella sp.) 
were numerous folliculinids whose sacs, necks, 
and moniliform nuclei fell well within those 
limits prescribed for E. lignicola. Thus, as sug- 
gested by Mohr (1959: 86) E. lignicola is not 
restricted to tracheids. Mention should be made, 
however, that although they were abundant on 
calcareous tubes of serpulids, none was attached 
to calcareous walls of abandoned teredo burrows, 
shells, or pallets, although these apparently af- 
forded similar attachment potentials. 
As frequently observed in other folliculinids, 
sac length, width, and height often varied with 
site conditions. In young colonies, composed of 
few folliculinids, ample space resulted in normal 
sac formation; whereas in old colonies, com- 
posed of many folliculinids, limited space re- 
sulted in "abnormal” sac formation. Thus, sacs 
lying contiguously were usually longer, whereas 
those laid one on another were usually shorter, 
etc. Despite their occurrence on serpulid shells, 
certain restrictive sites seemed preferred. A com- 
mon restrictive site is illustrated in Figure 1. 
Although the neck (c) was free and always ex- 
tended at an angle from the opened portion of 
a tracheid (b), the sac (/) usually was con- 
fined, at least in part, in the unopened portion 
(g). This condition, which resulted in a long 
narrow sac (up to 1 66g), affected in no way 
either the length of the neck (c) or the number 
of its spiral whorls (d) . Thus, regardless of the 
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