Sources

Ohai!

Here are the sources Laura used to identify all the organisms in Mr. Microaquarium.

Custacea Amphipoda:
Micrographia. [Internet]. Sydney, Australia: Walsh J; c2001 [cited 2008 Nov 22].
Available from http://www.micrographia.com/index.htm

Crustacea.net. [Internet]. Sydney, Australia: Lowry JK, Springthorpe RT; c2001 [cited 2008
Nov 22]. Available from http://www.crustacea.net/index.htm

Barnard JL, Karaman GS. 1991. The Families and Genera of Marine Gammaridean
Amphipoda (Except Marine Gammaroids). Records of the Australian Museum 13(1):1-418.

Amphipod. [Internet]. : Encyclopedia Britannica Online.; c2008 [cited 2008 Nov 22].
Available from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/21587/amphipod

Midges/mosquito larvae:
A MicroAquariumTM and MicroTerrarium to Doscover Life. [Internet]. Florence,
Alabama: Davidson, PG, McCord, J; c2006 [cited 2008 Nov 22].

Crustacea Copepoda:
Protist Information Server. [Internet]. Hayama, Japan: The Graduate University
for Advanced Studies.; c2008 [cited 2008 Nov 22]. Available from http://protist.i.hosei.ac.jp/

Halteria:
Droplet - Microscopy of Protozoa. [Internet]. California: Rotkiewicz P; c2006
[cited 2008 Nov 22]. Available from http://www.droplet-microscopy.org/

Cyanobacteria:
Division Cyanophyta - Kingdom Monera. [Internet]. Manoa, Hawaii: Smith C; c2008 [cited
2005 Feb 25]. Available from http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/faculty/webb/Bot201/Bot201
/Algae/Cyanophyta% 20lecture%20notes%20revised.htm

Diatoms:
Micrographia. [Internet]. Sydney, Australia: Walsh J; c2001 [cited 2008 Nov 22].
Available from http://www.micrographia.com/index.htm

Arcella & Difflugia:
Droplet - Microscopy of Protozoa. [Internet]. California: Rotkiewicz P; c2006
[cited 2008 Nov 22]. Available from http://www.droplet-microscopy.org/

Rotifers:
A MicroAquariumTM and MicroTerrarium to Doscover Life. [Internet]. Florence,
Alabama: Davidson, PG, McCord, J; c2006 [cited 2008 Nov 22].

Paramecia:
Micrographia. [Internet]. Sydney, Australia: Walsh J; c2001 [cited 2008 Nov 22].
Available from http://www.micrographia.com/index.htm

And the Botany Blog she used as well:
General Botany 111 Fall 2008 Blog. [Internet]. Knoxville, Tennessee: McFarland K;c2008
[cited 2008 Nov 22]. Available from http://www.botany1112008.blogspot.com/

Bai!

And So They Lived Happily Ever After... NOT.

Hai2Uall!

Soooo, last week was the final week that silly little Laura had to go and observe Mr. Microaquarium. The trip was quite uneventful to say the least.

Fred is in fact the last of the original large organisms left in Mr. Microaquarium, and though Laura tried valiantly to catch a pciture of him, he was simply just to ADHD to sit still long enough. He seemed larger and was STILL eating dirt (there was less dirt in Mr. Microaquarium, obviously).

What seemed very strange was there was only about 2/3 of the water that was there last time. Is Fred becoming a drinker?? I doubt it, Laura and I assume some of the water evaporated since the heat has been turned on for the winter.

So sadly enough, The Midge-Eater is dying. Almost all of his traps have gone purple now and Laura and I saw no sign of a food source. Here are some pictures Laura took to show you.


The purple trap is on the right.

Moving on. Red moss is growing all over Plant A now. Poor guy, it's like leprosy or something, he'll forever be an outcast...


Ooooh, pretty, yes?

More sad news - the Agmenellum are turning yellow-ish brown, perhaps they are dying? Their interiors have also shrunken significantly.

Very sad. I almost cried...

The diatoms that were taking over also seem to be browning as well, but they are still widespead. Here's some will some of the tiny cilia that were swimming around.

It's kind of hard to see, but the little buggers aren't quite as green as they used to be.

Now for happy news! The rotifers are still present and hovering around the sides of Mr. Microaquarium, and the Halteria are still twittering around. Also. little Mr. Arsela is still in the same place, still just sitting there all yellowish-like.



And finally, here's a pic of some random dude Laura forgot to ask about. She'll seek answers and let you know. For now, all we'll call him is THE BLOB!



THE END!

BAI!

WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:

Plant A: still growing red moss

Plant B "The Midge-Eater": browning, most traps are purple

Organisms Observed:

• Crustacea (Fred): eating dirt
• Agmenellum
• Halteria
• Arsela
• Diatoms
• Rotifers
• small cilia
• THE BLOB

Water level 2/3 of last week's level.

That's all. I might post one last blog to summarize everything.

Hi, My Name is Fred, And I Have a Problem.

Ohai!

Sooo, upon visiting Mr. Microaquarium for the third time, Laura observed that the only "large" microorganism left was Fred. Fred seems to be doing fine; he's still eating dirt and is swimming around like mad. Maybe he has ADHD? This could be possible... I'll investigate and let you know.

Some tragic news - the Agmenellum's green interiors have contracted and drawn away from the membrane, and also The Midge-Eater's traps are dying and turning purple, from lack of food we have decided. Why purple? Laura doesn't know but Dr. McFarland suggested she ask her lab professor, since he likes to hang out with carnivorous plants and stuff.

Ah! Strange happenings! The water level was higher rather than lower. Laura thought she heard talk of food pellets being added and that might be the cause of the rise in the water. And also, Plant A seems to be growing a moss on it. Little red strand thingies to be exact (Laura thought she may have seen some green ones too). I think Dr. McFarland said it was "Rhyzoid," or something to that effect. Will investigate further into that.

Boring news - there are still many Halteria. Everywhere. Doing nothing but jerking about.

Laura and I also observed some "arsela" (little yellow circular thing) and "dephagia" (little black circular thing). Don't believe the words here, Laura has to go make sure she wrote them down right....

Hmm, oh! On the side of Mr. Microaquarium there were some rotifers. They weren't doing much, just flapping their cilia around.

And finally, the worst news of the night - MILLIONS OF DIATOMS ARE TAKING OVER! Okay, not quite as dramatic as it seems. Everywhere Laura looked there were tiny green cells that Dr. McFarland told us were Diatoms. And they were there in the millions. It was quite disturbing and they have certainly increased rapidly. I hope they don't get to Fred.

Teh End.



WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:

Plant A: growing red and green moss on it

Plant B "The Midge-Eater": traps are dying and turning purple, leaves browning

Organisms Observed:

• Crustacea (Fred): eating dirt
• Cyanobacteria
• Agemenellum
• Diatoms: millions
• Rotifer
• Halteria

More observations to be added next week.

And Then There Was One...

hai2u!!

So, being the lazy kid Laura is, she didn't go until Friday to view Mr. Microaquarium. I fear that he might have been lonely. But anyway.

So, Fred (Crustacea) is still alive and kickin'! He was swimming around quite quickly and Laura had to try and chase him with the microscope. While she was chasing him, she discovered that the midges were gone. All of them have disappeared with no signs of their adsult forms anywhere. Thus, Laura and I have come to the grizzly conclusion that, between The Midge-Eater and their cannibalistic tendencies, they have become extinct (in regards to Mr. Microaquarium's environmen, that is).

The Midge-Eater seems to be browning lightly, possibly because now it does not have a source of food, since Fred is either too fast or too smart to be caught.

Once again Laura noticed that there is less dirt in Mr. Microaquarium. We now know this is Fred's fault because we caught him in the act of dirt-eating. Blek.

Oh! New development! Laura found some cute little square things everywhere. They looked like little groups of square green cells. Upon investigation, we discovered that these little guys are called Agmenellum.

Laura also believes she saw some diatoms here and there. And there were also little clouds of tiny dots she has yet to identify.

Laura also spotted some cyanobacteria here and there. The ones she saw were dividing (she thinks).

And finally, we saw a little teardrop shaped dude whose head appeared to be at the tiny end of the teardrop and he drug his fat booty behind him. Not sure what he is yet, didn't see him last week.

I guess that's all for now. Despite the seemingly large amounts of new developments, Mr. Microaquarium seems very dead compared to last week. Until next time!

Bai!


WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:

Plant A: seems unchanged

Plant B "The Mide-Eater": browning lightly, has nothing caught in its traps

Organisms Observed:

• Crustacea (Fred): eating dirt
• Cyanobacteria
• Agemenellum
• Diatoms
• teardrop-like thing
• clouds of dots

Less dirt and water than last time.

More information to be added next week.

Day One on the Alien Planet...

O hai!

Day one of observation already revealed many new changes. Poor Laura was devastated to discover Dead Fred's corpse had disappeared, confirming his deadness and also hinting that he had been consumed by the other occupants of Mr. Microaquarium. How brutish. Fortunately though, Fred is still living and seemed to be eating the dirt at the bottom of the aquarium. This explained the definite decrease in dirt in Mr. Microaquarium. YUM. Oh yes, and amateur botanist Laura also discovered that Fred, and the late Dead Fred, are a type of Crustacean called an Amphipod.

Here is Fred's new Myspace pic, for your viewing pleasure.
(Don't tell him I told you, but this isn't really Fred. I'll try to get a real picture of him soon.)

In other news, Dr. McFarland told Laura that the nasty little worm-things in Mr. Microaquarium are called midges and they are a type of fly larvae, most likely mosquito or something similar. GROSS is all I have to say. Many of the ones that Laura observed were filled with something brown, which she later determined was the dirt that they were eating. Unfortunately for these nasty little guys kept getting caught by the carnivorous Plant B who I shall now deem "The Midge-Eater!!!" There were at least three midges caught by The Midge-Eater, two in it's large circular traps and one caught in a long tentacle.

(This is not our The Midge-Eater, but one of his friends. Amateur botanist Laura will put up a picture of OUR The Midge-Eater as soon as she can.)

Now for the Godzilla of news for Day One. While some of the midges were caught by The Midge-Eater, the free midges came and.... DUH DUH DUH!!! ATE THEM!!! I was quite horrified and I know Laura was as well. Dr. McFarland helped Laura take a picture of the horrifying act and she shall post it as soon as it comes into her possession. It would seem that the midges will eat anything, since Laura and I observed them eating dirt, each other, and the remains of what once might have been a Cyclopoid.

Speaking of Cyclopoids, Laura also saw at least one of them flitting about. Here is one of Cyclops' brothers. A picture of our own Cyclops will be posted soon.



Let's see. Mr. Microaquarium is also the host of millions of tiny circular organisms whose name amateur botanist Laura can't remember for the life of her, and seems to have misplaced her notes... But she will get back to you on that one.

Random observations: some leave from The Midge-Eater that had broken off were browning around the edges, Plant A seemed unchanged.

I guess that's all for now.

From the chinchilla on Laura's shoulder!


Bai!

WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:

Plant A: seemingly unchanged

Plant B "The Midge-Eater": caught several midges, broken off leaves browning on edges

Organisms Observed:

• Crustacean Amphipod (Fred and Dead Fred): corpse disappeared, live one eating dirt
• Midges: a few caught by Plant B, others eating dirt, each other, and other corpses
• Cyclopod: at least one flitting around
• tiny circular organisms that have very spastic, jerky movements

Less dirt in Microaquarium than before

More information to be added next time.

In the Beginning...

In the beginning there was a tiny aquarium.

Inside this tiny aquarium lived a plethora of "stuff" all gathered from outside sources. The lovely, not so crystal clear water of jar number 12 came from the "water pool below the spring." This mystical water source resided near Lynnhurst Cemetery off of Adair Drive. Knox Co. Knoxville TN. Spring Feed Pond N36 01.357 W83 55.731 958 ft ... to be exact.

In the water from the "water pool below the spring," Plants A and B now live happily after surviving the traumatic man-handling by amateur botanist "Laura," in order to get them into the tiny aquarium.

Plant A, also known as Amblystegium varium, is a dull olive with many tiny leaves.

Plant B, commonly recognized as Utricularia vulgaris, is bright green with pointy leave. It is carnivorous!!!

Alongside Plants A and B and the water from the "water pool below the spring," amateur botanist Laura observed many microorganisms. The first organism Laura observed was quickly deemed "Fred." Laura believes Fred to be some type of Crustacea. After several minutes of observing Fred's spastic zooming, Laura soon discovered a grossly less active Fred, now recognized as "Dead Fred." Fred and Dead Fred are potentially the same type of organism, disregarding Dead Fred's obvious... lifelessness.

Laura also observed many other creatures that she currently assumes are cyanobacteria (long stationary greenish strand...things) and nematodes. However, none of her findings are conclusive yet, as she hardly knows what she is doing.

Hopefully after her next visit to Mr. Mini-Aquarium, amateur botanist Laura will have some slightly more intelligent findings to share.

And that concludes "In the Beginning..." as told by the chinchilla on Laura's shoulder.

O hai!


WHAT REALLY HAPPENED:

Water Source:
#12 Water pool below spring. Lynnhurst Cemetery off of Adair Drive. Knox Co. Knoxville TN. Partial shade exposure Spring Feed Pond N36 01.357 W83 55.731 958 ft 10/13/2008

Plant A:
Amblystegium varium (Hedw.) Lindb. Moss. Collection from: Natural spring. Fountain City Park west of Broadway at Hotel Ave. Knox Co. Knoxville TN. Partial shade exposure. N 36o02' 15.18" W083o55' 59.95"988 ft. 10/13/2008

Plant B:
Utricularia vulgaris L. Flowering Plant. A carnivous plant. Collection from: Greenhouse in White Ave Biology Annex. The University of Tennessee. 1400 White Ave. Knox Co. Knoxville TN.Partial shade exposure N 35o57' 33.45" W083o55' 42.01". 932 ft 10/13/2008

Organisms Observed:

• Crustacea? - a larger shrimp-like creature
• Nematodes? - worm-like creatures
• Cyanobacteria? - stationary greenish strands

More information will be added after next observation.