Microorganisms I Found

Blog Post 5

This week was the last week observing the mircoaquarium. I observed the tank on November 13, 2014. Unlike last week, I there was a significant amount of activity this week. I saw many Ostracod sp. seed shrimp, again this week and I noticed them to be larger than ever ( Patterson 68). I noticed they moved quickly away from the light. I saw the majority of them toward the bottom of the tank where the dirt was. I saw one Cyclops sp. I noticed that the mircoorganism was bigger than the one I observed last week. I saw a Coleochaete solute, a type of green algae (Prescott 1978). It was the first time I saw this green algae.

Blog post 4

This weeks observation was not as active as last weeks. I think this is because the food pellet that was placed in the tank last week cause a lot of activity to occur. I saw the least amount of activity this time while observing. Although the activity was slow, I did observe a lot of Spirogyra sp. (Prescott 1978). I have been seeing this specimen since the start of the miroaquarium and it has became a vital part of the microaquarium. I also saw three Stentor sp. which I saw last week. I found a large Nematode inside of the Amblestegium varium ( Patterson 28). Another microorganism that I saw and have seen since the start of the tank was Euchlanis sp. (Prescott 1978).

Bibliography

McFarland, Kenneth [Internet] Botany 111 Fall 2014. [2014 November 2]. Available from http://botany1112014.blogspot.com/

Patterson, David J., and Stuart Hedley. Free Living Freshwater Protozoa: A Colour Guide. London: Wolfe, 1992. Print.

Rainis, Kenneth G., and Bruce J. Russell. A Guide to Microlife. New York: Franklin Watts, 1996. Print.

Blog Post 3 Mirco aquarium

On October 24  "Atison's Betta Food" was put into my microaquarium. The food pellet is made by Ocean Nutrition, Aqua Pet Americas at 3528 West 500 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84104. The ingredients are fish meal, wheat flower, soy meal, krill meal, minerals, vitamins and preservatives.The analysis of the food is Crude Protein 36%; Crude fat 4.5%; Crude Fiber 3.5%; Moisture 8% and Ash 15%  (McFarland, 2014).

This week I observed a lot more activity within my mircoaquarium. I believe that the food pellet caused the mircoorganisms  to move around more because it was just another source of food. I saw a fliamentis, which I didn't not see the last time I observed the microaquarium. I also saw three Cyclops. Another microorganism that I saw probably 3 to 6 times was Gastrotricha (Rainis and Russell, 1996 pg. 176-177). The Ameoba  that I observed for the first time was also a interesting specimen. It started as a unshapely structure then proceeded to turn into a circular structure and was attracted to the plants in my microaquarium. While looking at the Ameoba I also saw a lot of Cayonbacteria (McFarland, 2014). I also observed many Euchlanis (Patterson, 1992).

First Observasions and the set up of the MicroAquarium

Trey Dyer
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Trey D
http://treydyer15.blogspot.com/


I chose water source number 11, Fountain City Duck Pond, for my MircoAquarium. Fountain City Duck Pond is located West of Broadway at Cedar Lane in Knox Co. Knoxville, TN. The pond is full sun exposure. The coordinates of my water source are N36 02.087 W83.

Set up:
We were given a tank, a lid, and a stand for the tank to set on to start our MicroAquarium. We then put stickers on the top corner of the tank to identify which tank was which. We then collected water from the top layer, middle layer, and bottom layer of the certain water source we chose.  After adding the water, we also added two plants to the tank.The first plant was Amblestegium varium, which is a moss. The second plant was Utricularia gibba which is considered algae.

When I looked at the tank under a microscope, I saw different organisms swimming around. I also saw other organisms that were not moving around. The organisms that were moving looked to me like they were chasing each other in some instances. I am not sure what the organism was, but it was long and slender and they swam quickly away from the light.