Microcrustacea and Microinvertebrates - Now Pic Intense!

[Funky_Fish14]

Originally Posted by Crytone

Cool stuff and pictures. I didn't even think of looking at the library for books on this stuff.. Might have to check it out tomorrow or something after class!

Definitely! I dont know where you go, but I just go to the small U of A augustana campus in Camrose, so our library isn't giant (but it is brand new!) anyways, I bet main campus, and possibly Gmac, have a pile more books so there is a good chance of finding more!

[Funky_Fish14]

Originally Posted by BlueAbyss

I have spent a lot of time checking out the tiny 'naked eye' sized stuff in my tank, and honestly that's the coolest part of my tank (and the reason it's not stuffed with corals and fishes)! I love the little hitchhikers that came in on the rock... I have algaes of all shapes, sizes, and (almost) colors, snails, various amphipods and copepods, polychaetes, etc.

My next tank is planned to be 'rock only' or LRWOF... Live Rock With Out Fish

Very cool, thanks for sharing

I know what you mean! I love to stare at that stuff! Watching for things you'd never expect or have never seen, or even just seeing little specs zipping around! I thought it was so cool seeing this stuff with the naked eye, so small, and examining this coolest little critter that exists in thousands in my tank! Haha. I love it

[Funky_Fish14]

Got into a different lab today with one of my bio profs. I was able to use a new microscope (and slightly more convenient to use, although less powerful than the light microscope) called an inverted microscope. This meant I could mess around with drops of water in, or an entire petri-dish full, yet it still keeps the objective lens close to the specimen. The prof also told me that she thinks we do have a microscope with a screen, but she is not entirely sure about it's availability/location yet, and that we MAY have one with camera adaptability. If you look very closely, (though its really hard to get with the camera), you can spot some colour in the limbs and other parts of the critters, for example orange/blue and some pink/purple specs in the copepods, and some significant orange in the polychaete worm. The red spot in the two pods is a semi-functional 'eye'. (A single eye found in all members of the Subclass Copepoda).

I did get a couple videos of these critters swimming around in their 'drops' of water. I will try to get those on when I get a chance tomorrow.

Anyways, the first specimen is the last one from the previous set of shots but under a stronger scope.

[Funky_Fish14]

Another type of Copepod:











It was not very happy in this drop of water hence i think it began to, well, not do so well. The 'tail' began to twist upward like this. Once i transferred it back to more water it appeared to recover!


Under the same magnification as the last picture, most of these 'specs' are actually alive/moving around.

[Funky_Fish14]

Feather Caulerpa:











In this picture and the next, on the upper side of the main stem, 2 strands from the tip, you can spot a transparent organism on the outer side of a 'leaf'/branch. It was motoring around in and out of the parts of this sample, seemed to be hanging out 'against' the plant.

[Funky_Fish14]

The Polychaete worm I mentioned earlier. It was about 1/4 inch long when fully extended.











What i thought was a bristle worm (looks the same (as one of the same size) to the naked eye). It does not compare to a bristle worm under the scope.







Grape Caulerpa up close and personal:







Some sort of Isopod: (Appear to reach full size at about 3/16th of an inch)

[NuraNori]

I think your second bristle worm is still a polychaete...the segments aren't as well defined as the first one, they're a bit more squished together...but you can see the podia (the little bristle feet) on it still...

And your copepod was probably getting hot...it gets pretty hot under the lights.

Great work though Keep the pics coming!