Pigmented Ciliate

[Javier]

I found this beautiful ciliate over a very busy slide today and recorded some videos. I'm struggling with Q tips that seem to left fibers on my eyepieces that later show on the image. It's too bad this happens because otherwise, I would be happy with this video, given my humble equipment. I would appreciate it if someone could share a good article about microscopy cleaning.

TIA,
Javier.

Video Details:

Amscope b 120 and iPhone 5s.
100 x BF, 100 x DF, 200 x BF, 200 x DF.

[tlansing]

This is probably the pink ciliate Blepharisma.

As far as cleaning your lenses, there have been several threads containing useful information. Here is one that I bookmarked; you can search the site for others:
viewtopic.php?f=25&t=2029&p=15940&hilit=pec+pad#p15940

[micro]

Just use lens wipes and microfiber cloth

[smollerthings]

Nice little video. I love the colors!

What app do you use on the Iphone to film?

I had the same issue yesterday with eye piece dust too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JQrOnbEUb4

Had to disassemble and clean everything. I used a microfiber cloth. The image was much improved after. I am curious as to why I noticed them with the 20x but not that much at 7x...

[Javier]

This is probably the pink ciliate Blepharisma.

As far as cleaning your lenses, there have been several threads containing useful information. Here is one that I bookmarked; you can search the site for others:
viewtopic.php?f=25&t=2029&p=15940&hilit=pec+pad#p15940

I found a pink ciliate a while ago, but it turned to be a Pigmented Hypotrichia, not Blepharisma. This one looks more like Blepharisma, but I can't tell. Thanks for the cleaning thread.

Just use lens wipes and microfiber cloth

I bought some Zeiss wipes today and tried them on an astronomy eyepiece. They clean the glass quite nicely, but they also leave particles behind.

Nice little video. I love the colors!

What app do you use on the Iphone to film?

I had the same issue yesterday with eye piece dust too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JQrOnbEUb4

Had to disassemble and clean everything. I used a microfiber cloth. The image was much improved after. I am curious as to why I noticed them with the 20x but not that much at 7x...

Thank you! I like the colors too. I do not use any app. I found a while ago that if you touch the screen for one second during the video, the phone will block auto-brightness and autofocus. Once you do that, moving your finger up or down on the screen will adjust the brightness, which is great for dark-field. I wish I'd discovered this months ago, it's so simple!

As far as the debris showing in the 20x and not the 7x, I think that has to the with the width of the light cone.

[actinophrys]

This one is for sure Blepharisma. Besides the distinctive pink colour, which comes from a defensive quinone, you can see a lot of details in your image: the row of membranelles down the side, the simple cilia in rows over the rest of the cell, and the posterior water expulsion vesicle. There are pigmented hypotrichs too, but they generally have compound cirri instead of full rows and the water expulsion vesicle is always in the front half, and I don't know if any are quite this colour.

Nicely done, and interesting seeing it in darkfield too...some years ago it was noticed here that the related Stentor coeruleus can look very different in that lighting, with probably fluorescence changing the colour from blue-green to pinkish too.

[Javier]

This one is for sure Blepharisma. Besides the distinctive pink colour, which comes from a defensive quinone, you can see a lot of details in your image: the row of membranelles down the side, the simple cilia in rows over the rest of the cell, and the posterior water expulsion vesicle. There are pigmented hypotrichs too, but they generally have compound cirri instead of full rows and the water expulsion vesicle is always in the front half, and I don't know if any are quite this colour.

Nicely done, and interesting seeing it in darkfield too...some years ago it was noticed here that the related Stentor coeruleus can look very different in that lighting, with probably fluorescence changing the colour from blue-green to pinkish too.

Great info. Thank you!

I did not know that Stentor Coeruleus was related, but I did notice some strucrure on this Blepharisma that looks a lot like Stentor's macronucleous.

[micro]

Do you have an air blower? https://i5.walmartimages.com/asr/0fed21 ... nBg=ffffff

[Javier]

I ashamed to say I don't...

My plan was to use the Zeiss wipes combined with a lens brush to remove the remaining particles, but I have to do it with time and patience, setting a perfect illumination.

Do you recommend using an air blower over a brush?

[micro]

Air blowers are absolutely mandatory for microscopes and cameras.