Nov 17, 2007

Prepare to Feast

Below is a photo of what a splash of seawater looks like under the microscope, magnified 25 times. You're looking at a group of plankton. Now, plankton is a catch-all term for a variety of animal and plant life. Plankton is defined by its size, and by the fact that they are unable to swim against ocean currents. Plankton includes:

Marine viruses (the femtoplankton), microscopic algae and bacteria, tiny worms and crustaceans, as well as the egg, juvenile and larval forms of larger animals and plants such as seaweeds, crabs, lobsters, fish and urchins. Because they drift with ocean currents, even large jellyfish are classed as plankton.

Plankton, both plant and animal in nature, are the bread-and-butter of the oceanic food chain. And there's plenty of it. So, the next time you're in the ocean, strap on your bib, open wide, and prepare to feast.

Thanks for the link, Ida. Photo source: DailyMail
at

12 comments:

  1. JadeNovember 17, 2007

    That's way too neat! I love the spidery looking one in the bottom right corner.

    I'll have to catch a few (thousand) for my next salt water tank!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Meirav RathNovember 17, 2007

    That's way too beautiful; the colors, the shapes, too, too beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  3. YouthPlay StaffNovember 18, 2007

    Although our blog tends to feature the more attractive critters of nature, your critters are just as wonderful. Great site! Also,the T-shirt just doesn't represent the ugly theme of your blog--its much too cute. Challenge the minds of your young folks at YouthPlay.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jack RuttanNovember 18, 2007

    Reminds me of an 18th century cartoon I saw in a Time/Life science book. It was from the days when microscopes became a big craze, and purification standards were ahem, a little lower.

    "We might call it 'Thames Water,' but actually it's MONSTER SOUP!"

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jack RuttanNovember 18, 2007

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jack RuttanNovember 18, 2007

    Er, try this as a link to the pic I was talking about.

    ReplyDelete
  7. amandacherylNovember 18, 2007

    so....never going swimming in the ocean again..not if someone's appetizer is going to be crawling all over me!

    ReplyDelete
  8. AnonymousNovember 19, 2007

    This image would make a great table cloth, or perhaps a shower curtain?

    Sherry SofN

    ReplyDelete
  9. Nebulous GreyNovember 19, 2007

    Oooh, I'd buy this as a shower curtain. Absolutely. *nods*

    ReplyDelete
  10. ArachnophileNovember 20, 2007

    I saw this picture a while ago. I TOTALLY should have thought to send it to you.

    I love that life gets even more prolific when you shrink it down.

    ReplyDelete
  11. UnknownNovember 20, 2007

    I was leaning toward upholstry fabric myself.

    N

    ReplyDelete
  12. AnonymousNovember 20, 2007

    Wow, thats sooo cool looking. I love it!!! I totaly would buy that shower curtain!

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.