Week 2
Actinosphaerium
My observations of the second week of my MicroAquarium project is very interesting. First, I noticed the huge change in the amount of organisms in the aquarium, from snails, who were very active in digesting everything that came their way as well as many small organisms floating all over, especially around plant B. The picture above is a multinucleated heliozoan that is related to Actinophrys. (Paterson, D.J. 1979). They are very small and are very common in fresh water as well as in lakes and rivers. They are unicellular and spherical in shape with a almost clear body and is filled with tiny vacuoles which assist in flotation. (Paterson, D.J. 1979). When I first noticed this organism I notice that it was moving very slow and at the same time it was digesting a piece of something, it almost looked like a vacuum. I actually took a video as it was happening, but I had trouble downloading it. As soon as get the problem fix, I will have it on my blog.
Citation:
Patterson, D.J. 1979. On the organization and classification of the protozoon, Actinophrys , microbios, p. 165-208.
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