Amoeba Paramecium Blepharisma The Blepharisma is a common ciliate found in most any pond. It is similar in size and shape to the Paramecium, but displays an unusual characteristic, albeit a potentially fatal one. It is easily spotted because, unlike most of its community pond inhabitants, it is not transparent, but rather a striking pink color under normal conditions. When exposed to an intense artificial light, such as that from a micro-projector, the pink pigment emits a poisonous toxin that completely disintegrates the creature. http://www.silkentent.com/gus1911/StuffText.htm Euglena Stentor The green color tone in this pair is probably due to the presence of symbiotic green algae http://www.silkentent.com/gus1911/BlueStent.htm Colpidium Eats bacteria ebiomedia.com/gall/ micronat/Colpidium.html Vorticella Chilomonas Chilomonas are very common and are one of the chief food sources for larger protozoans, especially Amoeba proteus. http://www.microscope-microscope.org/applications/pond-critters/protozoans/mastigophora/chilomonas.htm Didinium The Didinium is a protozoa that feeds exclusively on Paramecia. If a culture of Paramecia is innoculated with just two Didinium, the Didinium will wipe out the colony of Paramecia in just a few days, regardless of how large the culture is. It takes about one minute for the Didinium to consume a Paramecium, after which it moves on to consume another - sort of non-stop gluttony. The more they eat, the bigger they get, and the bigger they get the sooner they split into more of themselves. The Paramecia don't have a chance. http://www.silkentent.com/gus1911/StuffText.htm Volvox Spirostomum …Can grow to to a size of more than 4 millimetres. It can therefore be seen without the help of a microscope. When observed swimming in a little jar of pond water it looks like a little worm. The organism can contract it's body to 1/4 of it's length in 6-8 millisec which is the fastest contraction known in any living cell. …Feeds on bacteria. Like many large single celled organisms (giant amoebas, or Stentor: the trumpet animalcule) it has not one nucleus but many. The nucleii form a long strand, like a string of pearls. http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/indexmag.html?http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/artoct98/spiro.html Pond water Animals, NOT Protists… daphnia chaetonotus cypris macrothrix A rotifer hydra cyclops rotifers Meet the Water Bears… Click HERE for a video about water bears… .