Ciliate Lab Challenge – Nathan McCoy
August 30, 2018
Lab 2: Ciliate Challenge
Rationale: The rational behind this experiment was to get an understanding of how to use the dissecting microscope as this is a tool that will be used in labs in the future. This lab is also an introduction to ciliates and how to identify them in different samples.
Tools/Materials:
- Dissecting Microscope
- Pipettes
- Ciliates samples (in test tubes)
- Sample trays
Methodology:
- Take the dissecting microscope and set it on a flat surface. Plug in the microscope and ensure that the light bulb is working and all of the knobs are in working conditions. If not, choose a different microscope that is in working order.
- Take the ciliate samples and use the pipettes to transfer the samples from the test tubes to the sample tray, ensuring that you know where each sample was placed as to not have any of the samples get mixed up. Fill the section of the sample tray till it half fills the hole.
- Once the sample has been placed in the sample tray, place the sample tray on the stage plate of the microscope and line up the hole with the desired sample in the center of the stage.
- Ensure that all of the knobs are completely zoomed out.
- Once you have the desired hole on the sample tray in sight in the microscope, begin to turn the larger knob on the back end of the microscope to focus the image. Then once the image is in focus, you can use the smaller knob to zoom in further to have a closer look at the specimens in the viewing area.
- Make observations on the sample of ciliate, including shape, color, swimming patterns and other characteristics that are visible in order to make a more conclusive identification of the organism.
- Complete steps 3 through 6 for each of the samples to make an identification of the samples.
Findings:
Observations and Identifications*
| Sample # | Shape | Relative Size | Location in Media | Other Charateristics | Identification |
| 1 | Oval | 1/100th of field of view | Middle of the sample | See through with a small black spot on the top. | Paramecium |
| 2 | Circular/Flat | Very small, even at 40x magnification | Dispered | Looks like spiders | Euplotes |
| 3 | Oval/Cone shaped end | 1/50th of field of view | Bottom | Green/Brown | Blepharisma |
| 4 | Cone/Oval | 1/50th of field of view | All surfaces | Red color | Spirostomum |
| 5 | Worm like, rounded ends | 1/15th of field of view | Throughout | Very slender and is able to maneuver in the medium well. | Spirostomum |
| 6 | Oval shaped with a slight point on end | 1/20th of the field of view | Middle/Bottom of Media | N/A | Paramecium |
*Sample’s 1 & 2 were observed by Sydney Ortenburg. Sample’s 3 & 4 were observed by Mackenzie Singer. Sample’s 5 & 6 were done by myself, Nathan McCoy
Conclusions:
Through this experiment and observation of the different samples of ciliates, the research team has come to a better understanding of the dissecting microscope and also the detail that goes into identifying organisms, especially on a microscopic level. The observation of ciliates during this experiment was difficult as many of the species that were being observed by the team were either dead or put into shock through handling or other chemicals that may have been in the sample tray. This hindered the research team in understanding fully the way in which the organism swims, and also the structure of the organism which is crucial in trying to identify them. However, the identification were made to the best of our abilities and with the information that we were able to gather and I believe they were accurate identification, given the information and samples that we had. One way in which the experiment could be improved is by ensuring all lab tools and materials are cleaned before the experiment takes place. Some future steps in the identifications of these ciliates could be to get more lively samples to get a better understanding of their characteristics. Then also other factors such as where they were collected could be looked at to better identify the organism.