I call them bell gliders

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Rossf
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I call them bell gliders

#1 Post by Rossf » Tue Jun 02, 2020 4:03 am

Hello fellow microbe fans-Sorry about the crappy drawing but I haven’t caught them on video yet and I am NOT an artist-I call them bell gliders-Bell shaped with three flagella (well I think anyway) they glide very gracefully usually 3 or 4 attached together sometimes gliding in a straight line, sometimes twirling like an aerobatic plane display-when they twirl the flagella twirl as well-very nice to watch. They are pretty small even at 400x-Anyone know what they are-they are in my soil and compost and I’m pretty sure I’ve found them in pond water.
Regards ross
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MichaelG.
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#2 Post by MichaelG. » Tue Jun 02, 2020 7:54 am

https://www.componentshop.co.uk/5mm-ult ... -lead.html

Couldn’t resist thinking of them as primordial LEDs

:D MichaelG.
Too many 'projects'

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Rossf
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#3 Post by Rossf » Tue Jun 02, 2020 10:45 am

MichealG Yep I know they look like LED’s-it was my first thought seeing them but they are so graceful I couldn’t just name them LEDcrobes. I’ve only seen them in phase so I think their refractive index must be very low. I really need to prioritise a book to identify what I see...

Bruce Taylor
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#4 Post by Bruce Taylor » Tue Jun 02, 2020 12:26 pm

I don't know of any genuinely triflagellate organisms with that shape, but there are some that can look that way because of other cellular structures. Here's a choanoflagellate in phase contrast, for example: https://www.photomacrography.net/forum/ ... 0326_1.jpg Only the central fibre is a flagellum. The outside ones are part of the "collar" possessed by members of that group. Another: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hp2dkQDlTck And one more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craspedid ... _Phase.jpg All choanoflagellates have that collar (it's a defining character of the group). Many are colonial, and some can appear bell-shaped.

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Rossf
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#5 Post by Rossf » Wed Jun 03, 2020 3:40 am

Good clues Bruce Taylor-thanks-I think the middle flagella is longer than the other structures-I will endeavour to catch them on video rather than just rely on memory-they do always seem to swim in a joined line like in the sketch.
Regards ross

Bruce Taylor
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#6 Post by Bruce Taylor » Wed Jun 03, 2020 11:51 am

Rossf wrote:
Wed Jun 03, 2020 3:40 am
I think the middle flagella is longer than the other structures
That is typical of many choanoflagellates.

charlie g
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#7 Post by charlie g » Wed Jun 03, 2020 2:56 pm

G'day Rossf, your description of the graceful motion of this organism, the fact that they 'seem small in size' for you...well if you can recall their direction of motion...if these small groupings move in the direction of their flagella...please look at images of freshwater Dinobryon sertularia or related species. These individuals, or small groupings ( small groups perhaps due the disruption and fragmentation of larger colonies during transfer to microscope slides?) often move gracefully as you described. fair dinkum, charlie guevara

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Rossf
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#8 Post by Rossf » Fri Jun 05, 2020 10:17 am

charlie g I’ll check out those suggestions-they definitely move with the flagella dragging behind them-well when I’ve seen them anyway-your comment about disrupted colony sounds a good clue as well cos I think I’ve seen them in a circle cluster-heads facing in-flagella facing out-I will do my best to get some video of them ASAP-their gracefulness is what always grabs my attention when I notice them-almost like it’s an identifying feature in itself-I will teach myself how to use a micrometer slide and sizing software-I’m sure me saying things like “they are pretty small at 400x” must be pretty frustrating to read!
Regards ross

Bruce Taylor
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#9 Post by Bruce Taylor » Fri Jun 05, 2020 12:23 pm

Rossf wrote:
Fri Jun 05, 2020 10:17 am
I think I’ve seen them in a circle cluster-heads facing in-flagella facing out-
That colony-shape would be very typical of choanoflagellate clusters, such as those formed by Salpingoeca rosetta: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salpingoeca_rosetta.

Dinobryon colonies are branching, like little trees made of nesting champagne glasses: https://www.google.com/search?q=Dinobry ... 80&bih=551

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Rossf
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#10 Post by Rossf » Wed May 05, 2021 6:43 am

Old topic but I finally caught them again but actu on video-I think they seem to show up more in autumn as I’m busy composting…

https://vimeo.com/user85693999/review/5 ... 7ad0a9b8a2

Regards ross

Bruce Taylor
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#11 Post by Bruce Taylor » Wed May 05, 2021 11:43 am

Choanoflagellates. :) Our nearest single-celled relatives.

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Rossf
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Re: I call them bell gliders

#12 Post by Rossf » Thu May 20, 2021 1:13 am

Thanks Bruce Taylor-aren’t they gracefull? Bloody hard to keep in focus but I’m still not good at keeping water drops appropriately small on my wet mounts!
Regards ross

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