Critter List

 

Critter of the Week

(the party is over)

 

Of all the organisms that I have observed in my micro aquarium over the last few weeks, this one in particular has been one of the most abundant.  And for that matter, they also seem to be some of the most active.  They were everywhere and constantly moving about in search of food.

 

 

This organism is a type of rotifer called Euchlanis.  As you can see, they are transparent which allows you to see their internal organs including the mastax or jaw which looks kind of like a rams head located towards the medial superior portion of the body.  This structure also has sweeping cilia that is typical of the rotifers.  This creature was identified using the book Fresh Water Invertebrates of the United States by Robert W. Pennak, pages 170-171, figures 106 and 107.

 

Another critter that I wanted to make sure that made it on to my blog before our observation period was over is this little guy...

 

 

This is actinospharium.  These organisms belong the heliozoan group of protists. They are some of the most common heliozoa in fresh water, and are especially frequent in lakes and rivers.  The heliozoans get their name from the radiating spines that project out from the amoeboid like body in the center, which in a way, is reminiscent of the sun.  This organism was identified using the book The Protozoa:  Introduction to Protozoology by John N. Farmer, page 4, figures 1-6.  

 

And with that, the party is over.  My observations have been completed, the micro aquarium has been sanitized and I have now started my report.  It was interesting seeing all the critters that inhabit the micro-world which is invisible to our naked eye.  There is so much going on around us that we take for granted.         

Critters of the Week (week #4)

 

After adding the Beta food pellet last week there has been somewhat of a population explosion (as one would expect) in my micro-aquarium.  The variety of organisms has stayed about the same, but the density of several types of organisms has definitely increased.  I didn't try to identify a specific type, but diatoms were everywhere.

 

 

There were all different shapes and sizes of diatoms and personally, I think their silica shells are interesting to look at.

 

Another organism that I found in my micro-aquarium was Cyclidium.  Literally, I found dozens of these little guys, so I'm assuming that they really like Beta food pellets. Unlike many of the other critters in my micro-aquarium, Cyclidium is actually pretty easy to photograph.  It will sit still for a few moments, then move in a "jumping" type movement, then it will sit still again for a while.  It's hard to make out, but the Cyclidium is covered with cilia and has one caudal cilia which is longer than the others.  This organism is quite common in lakes and ponds.    

 

This organism was identified using the book Free-Living Freshwater Protozoa, A colour Guide by D.J. Patterson, page 149, figures 331 and 332.

 

From what I was told by Dr. MacFarland, the Beta food pellet has probably already been consumed by the denizens of my micro-aquarium, so I would expect things to slow down a little by next weeks observation period.  I guess we'll see.

Bibliography Page

 

NOTE:  All reference material that is referenced or cited will be posted on the bibliography page in the "Bibliography" link under the "Home" page link. 

Critter of the week (week #3)

 

 

For this week's critter I didn't have to spend very long at the microscope.  There were many candidates, but eventually the winner was the one that moved the least.  Some of these little guys are pretty quick and trying to get a good picture of them is next to impossible.  That's why I like this one in particular.  It didn't move because it was attached to a Bladderwort stem.

 

 

 

This is a Limnias.  The Limnias is a rotifer in the Flosculariidae family.  Dr. MacFarland

helped me identify this little guy using The Guide to Microlife by Kenneth G. Rainis and Bruce J. Russell.  This particular animal caught my attention because of the way it uses the cilia around it's mouth.  The cilia move very quickly in a circular motion sweeping food into it's mouth.  Simple but effective.   

Critter Feeding Time

Nom Nom!

 

 

On Friday October 24, 2014 a single beta food pellet was inserted into my micro aquarium by Dr. MacFarland. The brand used was "Atison's Betta Food" made by Ocean Nutrition, Aqua Pet Americas, 3528 West 500 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84104. Ingredients were: Fish meal, wheat flower, soy meal, krill meal, minerals, vitamins and preservatives. Analysis: Crude Protein 36%; Crude fat 4.5%; Crude Fiber 3.5%; Moisture 8% and Ash 15% (McFarland 2014).  Hopefully the critters will like it, I'm sure they will because I don't think they're very picky eaters.  Besides, who could resist "fish meal"?  Yummy.  

Critter(s) of the Week

Last week we set up our micro-aquariums and took a quick look under the microscope.  It was quickly evident that there is a lot more going on in this little glass box than you might imagine.  This week I spent a little more time trying to find and identify some of the various swimming , squirming, and wiggling things that I spotted last week.  One of the most interesting life forms that I found was actually not a individual organism, but many organisms that live in a colony.  Nitzchia paradoxa, sometimes called a Carpenters Ruler, are a type of diatom that are common to the temperate waters of North America.  I was able to identify this diatom using the Key to the Genera of Diatoms of the Inland Waters of Temperate North America by William C. Vinyard  (and maybe a little help from my Professor Dr. McFarland of course).  As you can see in the video below, they have a very distinctive movement that is quite interesting to watch. 

 

Each one of the segments of this organism is an individual diatom.  What makes this so interesting is that no one is really sure how each of these diatoms communicates with each other and coordinates the movement that you see.  It's amazing how much we don't know.