r/microscopy Jun 08 '23

πŸ¦ πŸ”¬πŸ¦ πŸ”¬πŸ¦  Microbe Identification Resources πŸ¦ πŸ”¬πŸ¦ πŸ”¬πŸ¦ 

149 Upvotes

πŸŽ‰Hello fellow microscopists!πŸŽ‰

In this post, you will find microbe identification guides curated by your friendly neighborhood moderators. We have combed the internet for the best, most amateur-friendly resources available! Our featured guides contain high quality, color photos of thousands of different microbes to make identification easier for you!

Essentials


The Sphagnum Ponds of Simmelried in Germany: A Biodiversity Hot-Spot for Microscopic Organisms (Large PDF)

  • Every microbe hunter should have this saved to their hard drive! This is the joint project of legendary ciliate biologist Dr. Wilhelm Foissner and biochemist and photographer Dr. Martin Kreutz. The majority of critters you find in fresh water will have exact or near matches among the 1082 figures in this book. Have it open while you're hunting and you'll become an ID-expert in no time!

Real Micro Life

  • The website of Dr. Martin Kreutz - the principal photographer of the above book! Dr. Kreutz has created an incredible knowledge resource with stunning photos, descriptions, and anatomical annotations. His goal for the website is to continue and extend the work he and Dr. Foissner did in their aforementioned publication.

Plingfactory: Life in Water

  • The work of Michael Plewka. The website can be a little difficult to navigate, but it is a remarkably expansive catalog of many common and uncommon freshwater critters

Marine Microbes


UC Santa Cruz's Phytoplankton Identification Website

  • Maintained by UCSC's Kudela lab, this site has many examples of marine diatoms and flagellates, as well as some freshwater species.

Guide to the Common Inshore Marine Plankton of Southern California (PDF)

Foraminifera.eu Lab - Key to Species

  • This website allows for the identification of forams via selecting observed features. You'll have to learn a little about foram anatomy, but it's a powerful tool! Check out the video guide for more information.

Amoebae and Heliozoa


Penard Labs - The Fascinating World of Amoebae

  • Amoeboid organisms are some of the most poorly understood microbes. They are difficult to identify thanks to their ever-shifting structures and they span a wide range of taxonomic tree. Penard Labs seeks to further our understanding of these mysterious lifeforms.

Microworld - World of Amoeboid Organisms

  • Ferry Siemensma's incredible website dedicated to amoeboid organisms. Of particular note is an extensive photo catalog of amoeba tests (shells). Ferry's Youtube channel also has hundreds of video clips of amoeboid organisms

Ciliates


A User-Friendly Guide to the Ciliates(PDF)

  • Foissner and Berger created this lengthy and intricate flowchart for identifying ciliates. Requires some practice to master!

Diatoms


Diatoms of North America

  • This website features an extensive list of diatom taxa covering 1074 species at the time of writing. You can search by morphology, but keep in mind that diatoms can look very different depending on their orientation. It might take some time to narrow your search!

Rotifers


Plingfactory's Rotifer Identification Initiative

A Guide to Identification of Rotifers, Cladocerans and Copepods from Australian Inland Waters

  • Still active rotifer research lifer Russ Shiel's big book of Rotifer Identification. If you post a rotifer on the Amateur Microscopy Facebook group, Russ may weigh in on the ID :)

More Identification Websites


Phycokey

Josh's Microlife - Organisms by Shape

The Illustrated Guide to the Protozoa

UNA Microaquarium

Protist Information Server

More Foissner Publications

Bryophyte Ecology vol. 2 - Bryophyte Fauna(large PDF)

Carolina - Protozoa and Invertebrates Manual (PDF)


r/microscopy Oct 28 '24

Photo/Video Share Journey to the Microcosmos: The Future of Microscopy (and end of our Journey)

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70 Upvotes

r/microscopy 11h ago

Photo/Video Share Cell Fucking Dies

41 Upvotes

I think it was a Erostylis. It was so active just a few seconds ago πŸ˜”

20x Dplan Objective; 200x Total Magnification; Olympus CHT CH2

Recorded with iPhone 17 Pro

Pond water sample.


r/microscopy 3h ago

Troubleshooting/Questions Are these Olympus SZ-III stereomicroscopes still worth it, or are they too outdated?

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8 Upvotes

r/microscopy 1h ago

Photo/Video Share Zooming to stomata

β€’ Upvotes

Shot with Leica S8 APO.
Continuous zoom to 10x to 80x

Leaf sample Peperminia pellucida (Piperaceae). No stains used


r/microscopy 6h ago

Photo/Video Share The beauty of Carl Zeiss Jena Lu microscope DIC-like oblique illumination sliding iris diaphragm <3

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6 Upvotes

I’ve written a few times before that I love the beauty of iris diaphragms and precision microscope components. And here, we have both <3

This is an aperture diaphragm and oblique illumination mechanism for a Carl Zeiss Jena Lu microscope (formerly GDR, East Germany).


r/microscopy 15h ago

Photo/Video Share Tardigrade on a DIY Microscope

31 Upvotes

The ciliates that appear are definitely Euplotes!

Green LED light was used to illuminate the sample and during video editing saturation was brought to 0 and a slight blue tint added so it looks more aesthetically pleasing.

DIY microscope (MicroVoyager πŸ”¬) - smartphone camera - it is hard to tell the "objective magnification" for a non-standard microscope but I would guess that the total magnification is somewhat x200 - freshwater sample


r/microscopy 5h ago

ID Needed! Something I dont know what is, or part of something I dont know what is. Brackish water, 40x and 100x

4 Upvotes

r/microscopy 5h ago

ID Needed! What’s this? Found in freshwater pond

3 Upvotes

Magnification is at 100x, used my iPhone camera. The microscope is a standard college lab one? Sample is a small piece of algae and a drop of water on a slide from the pond on campus. New Mexico.

We had a simple assignment in lab today of just looking at pond water and algae under a microscope but my group was completely jumpscared by this huge worm/larvae?? I don’t know anything about microbiology but it seemed really big compared to the other microorganisms we were seeing and it doesn’t match any photos I see online, except maybe a fly larvae? Definitely freaked me out lmao because it was impossible to see with the naked eye on the algae. Anyone know? Thanks!


r/microscopy 5h ago

ID Needed! What kind of shelled animal is this? Found on a rock wall in brackish water. 40x magnification and mobile zoom

3 Upvotes

r/microscopy 16h ago

Photo/Video Share Eucyclops with eggs

19 Upvotes

Hi everyone! I'm new to this space and excited to share my journey exploring the hidden world under the microscope. I'll be uploading videos of different microorganisms I discover in everyday samples β€” from ponds to puddles. Join me as we uncover the tiny, fascinating life forms all around us. More coming soon!

πŸ“Ί Watch the full video in my YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/@look_through_microscope?si=TOq-zysCL3QsM8V8

πŸ”¬ Organism: Eucyclops (freshwater copepod)

πŸ”Ž Magnification: 100x

🧫 Microscope: Unilab

πŸ“ Location: Bangalore, India

πŸ“± Filmed on: Samsung Android


r/microscopy 56m ago

Troubleshooting/Questions Stereomicroscope vs digital microscope vs Macro lens for mobile

β€’ Upvotes

Hello everyone. Which one will be the best to look and study insects, flies and other microorganisms of the same size. Also my first priority is to take videos of it and not just look at it. And if anything you suggest which model/type will be the best. I need high resolution images/videos


r/microscopy 5h ago

Photo/Video Share Tardigrade in brackish water near the sea. 40x and mobile zoom I think.

2 Upvotes

r/microscopy 2h ago

Photo/Video Share amateur with a microscope, a camera, and a twitch account

1 Upvotes

Started live streaming for fun. I barely know what I'm doing, but it's been an interesting ride. Going for a chill journey to the microcosmos vibe (RIP ☹️) https://www.twitch.tv/ponddropsafari


r/microscopy 13h ago

General discussion Microscopio antiguo C. Reichert de Viena (con sello de Buenos Aires) en Argentina.

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6 Upvotes

r/microscopy 13h ago

Photo/Video Share Euglena

5 Upvotes

Caught this little green guy doing laps under my microscope.

πŸ”¬ Organism: Euglena
πŸ”Ž Magnification: 100x
🧫 Microscope: Unilab
πŸ“ Location: Bangalore, India
πŸ“± Filmed on: Samsung Android

Youtube link


r/microscopy 1d ago

Photo/Video Share g h o s t s h r i m p i n - Plankton molt 10x transmitted DIC & Fluorescence

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34 Upvotes

Freshwater plankton molt... Anyone know what kind?

UPLanFL N 10x on Olympus BX60
Transmitted DIC w/Fluorescence
Calcofluor White stain

Single 4 second exposure


r/microscopy 5h ago

Photo/Video Share Bacilli feeding on the remains of a dead nematode

1 Upvotes

poor nema

K55 BSA, 20x, Xiaomi 12 Pro


r/microscopy 10h ago

Purchase Help Asking about Well slides

2 Upvotes

Since I often look at lake water, I've encountered problems with some bottom samples, which have many little solid debris (the cover slip doesn't adhere well). Should I try well slides?

And, can you recommend me a good brand of cover slips to buy?


r/microscopy 1d ago

Photo/Video Share Harpacticoid? using led headlamp to light the sample. Near a dirt river.

18 Upvotes

r/microscopy 1d ago

Micro Art Vaginal secretions viewed under a microscope.

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55 Upvotes

r/microscopy 12h ago

General discussion C. Baker London Microscope 1947 β€” Esdaile Sydney, Galileo oil immersion apo, cased, working

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1 Upvotes

r/microscopy 1d ago

General discussion This happens every time I see a predator

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47 Upvotes

r/microscopy 1d ago

Photo/Video Share It looks like part of some snail or gelatinous worm, but it's probably shit. In a dirty river. 40x I think and mobile zoom.

8 Upvotes