peridiniIdae

pl. [Modern Latin peridini(um); Lat. fem. pl. adj. suff. -idœ.] Zool.: A family of Cilio-Flag ell at a, free-swimming, persistent in form, sometimes naked, mostly cuira ed; flagellum usually single; oval aperture distinct; pigment spot frequently developed. Inhabiting salt and fresh water, and often highly phosphorescent. Reproduction by fi ion. Saville Kent enumerates ten genera. pěr-I-din-I-ŭm, s . [Gr. peridineō =to turn.] Zool .: The typical genus of the family Peridiniide (q. v.); body divided by a transverse ciliated furrow into two equal or sub-equal moieties. They inhabit salt and fresh water. The species P. sanguineum, from Bombay, colors the water charged with them a deep vermilion. Mr. H. J. Carter suggests that the plague, in which "all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood" (Exod. vii. 19), may be interpreted in connection with an abnormal development of an animalcule allied to this species. ( Saville Kent .)