Cafeteria (genus)

Cafeteria is a genus of marine bicosoecid described in 1988 by Tom Fenchel and D. J. Patterson. It was created after the discovery of a new species, Cafeteria roenbergensis, a tiny (5–10 ÃŽÂ¼m) eukaryotic organism that is eaten by protozoa and small invertebrates. The name is meant to indicate the importance of the genus in the food web.

Several species are recognised:

• Cafeteria biegae
• Cafeteria burkhardae
• Cafeteria chilensis
• Cafeteria graefeae
• Cafeteria loberiensis
• Cafeteria maldiviensis
• ?Cafeteria marsupialis <small>Larsen & Patterson, 1990</small>
• Cafeteria ligulifera <small>Larsen & Patterson 1990</small>
• Cafeteria minimus <small>(Griessmann 1913) Larsen & Patterson 1990</small>
• Cafeteria minuta <small>(Ruinen 1938) Larsen & D.J.Patterson, 1990</small>
• Cafeteria mylnikovii <small>Cavalier-Smith & Chao 2006</small>
• Cafeteria roenbergensis <small>Fenchel & Patterson, 1988</small>
• Cafeteria sippewissettensis <small>(Teal et al. 1998) Cavalier-Smith 2013</small>

References

• Encyclopedia of Life