First microscope photos...pond in my backyard

[tonikon]

Hello everyone,
these are my first pictures after I have decide to awake an old Litz SM microscope (this is the related post viewtopic.php?f=25&t=11176 ).
Unfortunately, I'm an absolute beginner in biological microscopy observation and I have not any competence about; so, what for me is astonishing for you could be common and trivial...I apologize for that.
I have observed and photographed 2 micro-organism swimming in a drop of water coming from a small pond in my backyard.
Can you help me to identify them and (it would be even nicer...) tell me about their ecology?
Thanks in advance.
Toni

[micro]

First one might be the predator loxophyllum

[tonikon]

Thanks micro,
is Loxophyllum a Ciliate, right? Inside him I think I see a sort of microscopic green alga or is it a part of its "normal" anatomy?
Toni

[micro]

Yes its a ciliate. The algae looking material is probably parts of other organisms it ate that are being digested.

[Hobbyst46]

Very nice images.

[D0c]

The images are lovely. I have a Leitz SM Lux as well and would be very keen on achieving similar results. Can you tell me a little bit about the kit you are using to capture these.

Ignore this message I see you have included a link to the info.

[Bruce Taylor]

This is Loxodes, a ciliate that prefers low-oxygen habitat (such as bottom sediments from stagnant pools). That dark line at the hooked end of the cell, in the first and second images, is a row of paired cilia that runs along the right edge of the mouth area (buccal field). At the bottom end of it there is a cone-shaped tube called the cytopharynx (very visible in the second image), which leads to the cell mouth (cytostome). That sharply-defined circle directly above it, in the first image, is an interesting organelle called a "Mueller's vesicle," which is used for gravity sensing, enabling the ciliate to distinguish up from down (allowing geotaxis). In the final image, it looks like the cell is being compressed by the coverslip, and has lost its normal shape. The second half of this video shows a Loxodes in a similar condition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cI-7axkpXVY

Most species of Loxodes eat bacteria, organic detritus and algae. It is mainly a grazer, whereas Loxophyllum (which is in an entirely different subphylum) hunts large mobile prey. At the rear end of the cell we see the remains of a desmid alga (possibly Cosmarium). The patches of gold and yellow in the cell are ingested matter.

[tonikon]

Thank you very much to everyone,
first of all, I think that most of the credit (for the image quality) goes to optical quality of the Leitz Apo series (oldies but goodies...), because I'm a real newbie in microscopy (but with a bit of experience in photomacrography).
I'm pretty happy that you have already identified tha Ciliate, so now I can search a lot of resources on the web: to dive in the deep see of a water drop for me is a fascinating experience and I'd like to learn a lot of things...just for example, the matter of the geotaxis is really intriguing (thanx Bruce)!
In the same pond, I have found another Ciliate (wow...I'm daring too much?) and a totally different kind of micro-organism that seems full of Cosmarium...
Tell me...is it correct to post more than one image in the same "identification topic"? If not, I can eliminate the new images and post in a new topic...
Ciao
Toni

[Bruce Taylor]

The ciliate is another Loxodes. The last image shows the carapace of a dead ostracod (a crustacean). The Cosmarium in there are probably safe from any marauding Loxodes that might try to eat them.

[BramHuntingNematodes]

I told you it was a superb scope!

[tonikon]

...The last image shows the carapace of a dead ostracod (a crustacean). The Cosmarium in there are probably safe from any marauding Loxodes that might try to eat them.

So, now we have evidence to prove that Cosmarium have invented the bunker before man

I told you it was a superb scope!

Yes...it really shines, but for me it is hard to use it successfully...expecially with fast-moving objects: focusing with knob, framing with stage controls and pressing the remote shutter is more difficult than juggling!

[tonikon]

Any indication for the other species?