Observe protozoan microorganisms from a drop of pond water under optical and electron microscopes
Paramecia and other single-celled organisms in pond water.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Paramecium and other species of single-celled organisms and the variety of ways they eat and move.
Transcript
NARRATOR: An optical microscope can magnify a drop of pond water by hundreds of times. It reveals a bustling community of single-celled organisms.
Some creatures have chlorophyll and use water, nutrients, and sunlight to manufacture their own food. Others are animal-like: they browse or hunt to find food. One type, the euglena, can do both. It has chlorophyll, and so it can photosynthesize. But if there’s not enough light, it searches for a meal by hunting.
Many single-celled organisms are very active, and different types have developed different ways to move. This is peranema. It pulls itself forward by this hairlike extension that bends and flutters just at the tip.
The amoeba moves fluidly by shifting its membrane, while vorticella moves by beating tiny hairlike structures, called cilia. Each vorticella also has a long stalk that coils up to resemble a spring.
The paramecium also moves by beating cilia. Thousands of cilia cover the paramecium’s body, and they work together to push the cell through the water in a twisting, spiral motion.
To appreciate the small size of these organisms, a human hair is placed next to a paramecium. Notice how the paramecium moves. If something gets in its way, the paramecium bumps it, backs up, and starts again. This complex motion is performed by coordinating its many cilia.
Single-celled organisms, such as the paramecium, may be more complicated than you realize. Like your own body, this single cell performs all the functions necessary for life.
To see how the paramecium eats, red dye is added to its food. As the paramecium moves, its cilia create transparent whirlpools that pull the dyed food into its mouth. Inside, the food collects in cavities called vacuoles, easily distinguished by the red dye. Currents in the liquid within the cell slowly move the vacuoles about, and the food is digested as it circulates.
With an electron microscope, we can examine the food vacuoles in high detail and see what the paramecium has eaten. Its last meal, like its first, was bacteria cells, neatly packed and ready for digestion.
Some creatures have chlorophyll and use water, nutrients, and sunlight to manufacture their own food. Others are animal-like: they browse or hunt to find food. One type, the euglena, can do both. It has chlorophyll, and so it can photosynthesize. But if there’s not enough light, it searches for a meal by hunting.
Many single-celled organisms are very active, and different types have developed different ways to move. This is peranema. It pulls itself forward by this hairlike extension that bends and flutters just at the tip.
The amoeba moves fluidly by shifting its membrane, while vorticella moves by beating tiny hairlike structures, called cilia. Each vorticella also has a long stalk that coils up to resemble a spring.
The paramecium also moves by beating cilia. Thousands of cilia cover the paramecium’s body, and they work together to push the cell through the water in a twisting, spiral motion.
To appreciate the small size of these organisms, a human hair is placed next to a paramecium. Notice how the paramecium moves. If something gets in its way, the paramecium bumps it, backs up, and starts again. This complex motion is performed by coordinating its many cilia.
Single-celled organisms, such as the paramecium, may be more complicated than you realize. Like your own body, this single cell performs all the functions necessary for life.
To see how the paramecium eats, red dye is added to its food. As the paramecium moves, its cilia create transparent whirlpools that pull the dyed food into its mouth. Inside, the food collects in cavities called vacuoles, easily distinguished by the red dye. Currents in the liquid within the cell slowly move the vacuoles about, and the food is digested as it circulates.
With an electron microscope, we can examine the food vacuoles in high detail and see what the paramecium has eaten. Its last meal, like its first, was bacteria cells, neatly packed and ready for digestion.