Pond Water Search

September 11—Take pictures of at least three organisms you found in the pond water search today.  If absent, write “absent,” and find three pond organisms on the Internet.  Identify and include an interesting fact on each one.  Add these organisms to your bottle or aquarium and tell me what you observed.

The three organisms we found in the pond water search were: a Giant Water Bug, A Scud/Amphipod and a Water Mite.

Facts about the Giant Waterbug:

• The largest true bug in the world
• can be cannibalistic.
• mating can take several hours, especially in the back brooding species.

Facts about the Scud/Amphipod:

• amphipods are often mistaken for tiny shrimp, which they resemble.
• Many amphipods are brightly coloured—red, pink, yellow, green, or blue.
• Most amphipods are active swimmers, being propelled by three pairs of abdominal appendages
• Amphipods have compound eyes, like crabs and insects; however, the eyes of amphipods never occur on stalks.

Facts about the Water Mite:

• often brilliant coloration. Scarlet, orange, red and yellow mites are common, and are extremely visible against a background of green water plants.
• Eggs are laid under water either on the surface of substrates such as stones or vegetation, or inside living plant tissue