Got a new microscope. Here is a few critters I found last night.

ScuttleBug · Sep 30, 2023

This was from a floating patch of hair algae in my refugium. Also saw a couple larger pods but they were way too fast for me to photograph. These are all at 400x but the photos are cropped so I'm not sure the actual size. Any idea of ID? Any suggestions of things people want me to look at?

Jay Hemdal · Sep 30, 2023

ScuttleBug said:
This was from a floating patch of hair algae in my refugium. Also saw a couple larger pods but they were way too fast for me to photograph. These are all at 400x but the photos are cropped so I'm not sure the actual size. Any idea of ID? Any suggestions of things people want me to look at?

The third photo could be a larval copepod, called a copepodite.

Jay

taricha · Sep 30, 2023

the first one looks like maybe a type of marine rotifer. they can be quite different in shape from the versions we culture up.
google images

The second looks like it could be an amphidinium dinoflagellate without chlorophyll. Dinos can be mixotrophs that sometimes grow just as predators and not photosynthetically. Some species are always non-photosynthetic, others can adjust back and forth.

Agree with Jay on number 3.

(nice microscope camerawork!)

ScuttleBug · Sep 30, 2023

taricha said:
the first one looks like maybe a type of marine rotifer. they can be quite different in shape from the versions we culture up.
google images

The second looks like it could be an amphidinium dinoflagellate without chlorophyll. Dinos can be mixotrophs that sometimes grow just as predators and not photosynthetically. Some species are always non-photosynthetic, others can adjust back and forth.

Agree with Jay on number 3.

(nice microscope camerawork!)

That's interesting about dinoflagellates, I've had a problem with them early on with this tank. I also did see one with the typical golden hue. I assume they are always present and are just under control? I saw a few ciliates as well but most everything was small crustaceans. I am going to try to get some silt and look at that as well as a spot of cyano