Pellitidae n. fam. (Lobosea, Gymnamoebia) - a new family, accommodating two amoebae with an unusual cell coat and an original mode of locomotion, Pellita catalonica n.g., n.sp. and Pellita digitata comb. nov

Two species of amoebae, the marine Pellita catalonica n. g., n. sp. discovered in the Ebro Delta (Spain) and Nivå Bay (Denmark) and the freshwater Pellita digitata n. comb., previously known from the UK and Switzerland and now found in North-Western Russia, have a very thick (0.5-0.8 μm) cell coat consisting of a fuzzy fibrous basal layer, covered with the dense layer of complex pentagonal glycostyles. The cell coat is integrated with the cell membrane and entirely envelops the amoeba, like a typical glycocalyx. For purposes of locomotion and phagocytosis the cell produces short papilliform subpseudopodia that protrude through the cell coat and are covered solely by the cell membrane. In order to accommodate these unusual organisms we established a new family, Pellitidae n. fam., within the subclass Gymnamoebia sensu Page, 1987, order Euamoebida.