Week 2

Week 2 Observations:
In my second week of observations there appeared to be even more movement around the plants than the week before. Some of the first insects that I observed were seed shrimp. These were the largest insects that I observed during my time of observations. They would be located anywhere from on the plants, to in the dirt. They appeared to be using some plants as their food source. They would often be down deep in the dirt in the bottom of the aquarium, where there could have possibly been other food sources. I also spotted some flagellate, which had a large tail and were transparent. One of the most interested things that i observed were ciliates. I later identified what they were exactly were with the help of a book. They were identified as peranema. Peranema are a colorless euglenid which, like most other colorless euglenids, does not readily swim, but glide along the ground. It appears to only have a single, very broad, emergent flagellum (Patterson D. 1996. Free Living Freshwater Protozoa. London, UK: Manson Publishing Ltd. 290 p.)

Patterson D. 1996. Free Living Freshwater Protozoa. London, UK: Manson Publishing Ltd. 290 p. (Figure 71 on page 52)

Week 1

Procedure (Week 1):
In order to set up our MicroAquarium we were first given a glass tank, a stand holder, and a lid. We then were provided dots which indicated which Aquarium is yours. We were then allowed to pick the water source of our choice. Then, using a pipet, we abstracted some of the water and mud from the water source. We made a thin layer of mud on the bottom of the Aquarium with a sufficient amount of water on top. We then took the plants, A and B, and placed them into the MicroAquarium. Then we took the first weeks observations, which will be discussed below. After the first round of observation, we filled the Aquarium with water to about a quarter inch from the top. Then we placed a lid on the top and placed them on the tray as indicated by the instructor.

Observations (Week 1):
In my observations it was apparent right from the start that plant A had more leaves than plant B. I then focused on plant B further. I observed the bladder of plant B where it was obvious that there was a lot of movement around. Not only was there some movement on the plant, but there was a lot of extra movement outside the plant. There appeared to be several insects that made their way into the Micro Aquarium. I expect to see a lot more changes when I take my observations next week.

PLANTS A and B ADDED TO MICROAQUARIUM

Letters reference the labels on the containers in the lab. 
Plant A . Fontinalis sp. Moss. Collection from: Natural spring. at Carters Mill Park, Carter Mill Road, Knox Co. TN. Partial shade exposure. N36 01.168 W83 42.832. 10/10/2010

Plant B. Utricularia gibba L. Flowering plant. A carnivous plant. Original material from south shore of Spain Lake (N 35o55 12.35" W088o20' 47.00), Camp Bella Air Rd. East of Sparta Tn. in White Co. and grown in water tanks outside of greenhouse at Hesler Biology Building. The University of Tennessee. Knox Co. Knoxville TN. 

13. Plastic Bird Bath Pool

13. Plastic Bird Bath pool . 0.9 mile from Fountain City Pond on Fountain Rd. Knox Co. Knoxville TN Partial shade exposure N 36o02.249' W083o55.999' 1121 ft 10/10/2010