Amoeba Engulfs Rotifer

[Ken Ramos]

Haven't posted over here in a good many months but I ran across something a bit unusual. At first I thought I had a rotifer squirmming around above or maybe even underneath and amoeba but the more I observed this activity, it became clear that the rotifer was actually inside the amoeba as its squirmming was stretching the cell wall. Not really good photographs but they tell a bit of the story.

[gpmatthews]

Welcome back stranger!

Interesting shots - how does something slow moving like amoeba catch a rotifer?

[Charles Krebs]

Wow... great find Ken!

[Ken Ramos]

Graham asked:

Interesting shots - how does something slow moving like amoeba catch a rotifer?

I have been asking myself the same question there Graham. It took a while for me to actually realize that the rotifer had been engulfed by the amoeba. Yes, puzzling indeed. Usually rotifers do not stay still long enough for something like this to happen or so I thought.

Thanks Charlie and Graham

[discomorphella]

Good Eyes Ken--

That's great. I don't know how it managed to catch it either, but then I once had a starfish in a seawater tank that managed to corner a small fish in a crevice (in a piece of coral I'd put there so the fish would have "a place to hide"). Boy did that ever backfire, the starfish sealed the fish off inside the rock and digested it...maybe your amoeba managed to drift above the rotifer and "dive" on it...

--David

[bernhardinho]

Hi Ken

welcome back, I was sort of worrying about you

Very nice find there, but I don't really believe in the plot: wouldn't that be a bit like Bugs Bunny catching the eagle? I would reckon it much more likely the rotifer crept into the shell deliberately in order to devour the amoeba chap.


See ya

Bernhard

[Ken Ramos]

Bernhard
I had never considered that Bernhard but you most likely are right. Indeed something to think about, thanks!

David
Food for thought here also. What ever the situation it sure was and looked quite puzzling, thanks!