An annotated and revised checklist of pleurostome ciliates (Protista: Ciliophora: Litostomatea) from Slovakia, Central Europe.

Pleurostomatids are predatory ciliates, living especially in the periphyton and benthos of various freshwater and marine habitats. In the present work, we provide an annotated and revised checklist of this ciliate group from the territory of Slovakia. Altogether 29 pleurostome species belonging to five genera have been reported there: Acineria incurvata, Ac. punctata, Ac. uncinata, Amphileptus claparedii, Am. falcatus, Am. fusiformis, Am. parafusidens, Am. pleurosigma, Am. procerus, Am. punctatus, A. rotundus, Litonotus alpestris, Li. anguilla, Li. carinatus, Li. crystallinus, Li. cygnus, Li. fasciola, Li. fusidens, Li. hirundo, Li. lamella, Li. minisculus, Li. muscorum, Li. obtusus, Li. triqueter, Li. varsaviensis, Loxophyllum helus, Lo. meleagris, Lo. rostratum, and Siroloxophyllum utriculariae. We have catalogued these records providing the following data for each species: (1) author(s) and date of publication; (2) name(s) of the species as appeared in the publication(s) followed by chronologically listed references including relevant page(s) in literature; (3) nomenclatural and taxonomic notes if needed; (4) main morphological characters; (5) morphological data on Slovak populations if available; and (6) all faunistic records.