Species of Gonostomum and Paragonostomum (Ciliophora, Hypotrichida, Oxytrichidae) from the Valley of Flowers, India, with descriptions of Gonostomum singhii sp nov, Paragonostomum ghangriai sp nov and Paragonostomum minuta sp nov.

Soil samples taken from the Valley of Flowers, a component of the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve in the Himalayan regions of India showed the presence of twenty two free living species of ciliates. There is a preponderance of species which exhibit oral ciliature and ontogenesis in the Gonostomum pattern. Of the four species of the genus Gonostomum, three viz., G affine, G gonostomoida and G kuehnelti are similar to described species; Gonostomum singhii is new. The two species of genus Paragonostomum viz., P minuta and P ghangriai are new. The three new species are described in the present paper. All these species show prominent hypertrophied ciliary structures. Their paroral membranes reveal characteristic differences with respect to their position, number of constituent cilia and the distance between adjacent cilia. It is proposed that such species specific features of the paroral membrane have a bearing in exercising different food organism preferences as they co-exist at many sites. This single factor has possibly played an important role in species diversification of this group of hypotrichs in this isolated habitat.