A charming large ciliate new to me! Encountered in my mesocosm.

[charlie g]

Hi all...my artificial pond and stream this year gave great microscopy. Past winter stoneflies carrying water-mites were collected on meadow snows below my mesocosm..I posted a thread on this earlier this year.

The good news is the emergent aquatic plants in the stream segment are splendid, the water-lillies are wonderful in the pond segment, the brown bull head fish, and a variety of minnows are thriving.but..but sadly

turbidity due a filamentous cyanobacteria ( blue green algae species) is totally reducing visibility beyond a depth of 12 inches ( 2.53 cm approx = one inch) in my setup.

This turbidity due a nitrogen fixing planktonic 'bloom-former' in temperate , and tropical waters around the world...Genus: Cylindrospermopsis ( aka: Genus: Anabaenopsis)...once this tough filamentous blue-green algae blooms...there is no

clearing of it in small man made ponds..so I am doomed to have turbid waters in my setup...sigghh. No, you can not pump in the amount of electricity/ equipment to run 'UV strong water 'clarifiers' for anything larger than an outdoor hot-tub..

at a sensible cost.

In recent years this genus ( Cylindrospermopsis) has replaced preexisting bloom-forming cyanobacteria globally. This dam filamentous blue green algae will impact freshwater farming..globally..welcome to climate change, fellow microscopists.

So here, this few days I sampled surface waters in my mesocosm stream-segment...and encountered a large ciliate ( new to me). Yes, yes, I intend to seek an ID..at least to Genus level ...soon ( not tonight).

Please enjoy this marvelous ciliate..thanks for visiting/ looking at my encounter. charlie guevara

[charlie g]

I took a simple 'scoop sample' of surface waters to at my microscope bench..encounter this wonderful ciliate.

The blue-green algae filaments are present all about my 'new to me' ciliate.

[charlie g]

Please enjoy this freshwater ( new to me) ciliate. I can describe the fascinating ciliature rythmic beating on on side...opposite the side with 'lumpy series'..overall the anterior end was observed to be flexible enough to fold on this ciliates axis.

I will attempt to ID this organisms..but not tonight! all the best, charlie guevara/ finger lakes-US

[WWWW]

Charlie G,

excellent images !

I think it is Loxophyllum meleagris, with the typical bundeld trichocysts.



WWW

[charlie g]

Thank you, WWW, for the ID input. Imaged with Nikon DL phase contrast...apologies for the dust in my light path.

Yes, yes, thanks WWW..I just visited online images of this charming ciliate. charlie g/fingerlakes/US