rotifers

Rotifers are microscopic aquatic animals, often less than a millimeter long, found in freshwater environments like ponds and lakes. They have a shapeshifting body with a head-like structure called a corona, covered with tiny cilia that create water currents to gather food particles. Rotifers play a vital role in aquatic ecosystems by helping decompose organic matter and serving as food for larger creatures. They exhibit a range of reproductive strategies, including parthenogenesis (cloning themselves without fertilization), which allows rapid population growth. Despite their tiny size, rotifers are complex, resilient, and important components of aquatic food webs.