Let me just go ahead and say, many organisms have died over the past week. Algae and pond scum has now formed and built up along the outside of the aquarium. The plant is looking very sad and there are NO MORE COLEPS. I didn't see one this afternoon. Granted, they could've been not active at that time, but there were not any when I was looking earlier.
The picture above is a rotaria rotifer - they are common among plants in ponds and lakes. The wheel's (as you can see are two of them that spin very rapidly) propel them forward in the water and procures food, primarily unicellular plants and animals. Some are transparent, some aren't, this one was transparent (Olsen). I haven't seen too many of these lately. I figured I would take a picture of one while I still could before this one died and show everyone.
Back to The Basics: There are a lot of dead organisms/missing ones, or dead ones that are not present anymore. The Coleps have all disappeared and I have not been able to find them. Most of the organisms I saw were located in the top of the aquarium, more than likely hiding from the the dark, treacherousness at the bottom of it (haha just kidding), but the aquarium is looking less and less clear by the week. The chlorophyll, green color of the tank is gone. The plant is getting gross and it's not as what it seems to be anymore.
Other than that, that is all I have for this weeks post of Little Chattanooga. Hopefully there will be more exciting news next week about organisms and if there is anything still alive or not. Stay tuned in for next weeks post (second to last one!).
Works Cited
Olsen, Lars-Henrik. "Small Freshwater Creatures". 2001. New York. Oxford University Press. Page 178
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