Read on Twitter
Microfauna wise! So much! Starting with the one that is the most exciting, a shrimp!!! I believe this to be a fairy shrimp, noted by how it looks like it swims upside down!
The reason I donât think itâs a brine shrimp, despite both looking awfully similar, is that brine shrimp are saltwater, and this is a freshwater river. If anyone knows more than me please butt in! I always want to learn more!
Next up, not as interesting, but we have various species of slug. I donât know enough to outright identify them. Please let me know if you know what these guys are!
Iâm gonna have to post this and keep adding to it as twitter wont let me add more tweets to the thread, donât worry Iâm not finished!
Next up, we have some kind of larger larvae on the top of the river scum. It seemed to be stuck in place. Most of the other wigglies are mosquito larvae, but there was the funkiest little worm dude at the end! I believe heâs a detritus worm, and will be harmless
Detritus worms come from the nadidae family, and are key components to benthic ecosystems, which our system is. Benthic refers to the lowest level of a body of water, basically in this case the river bed, or bottom of the jar.
These worms are all hermaphroditic, meaning they are both male and female, so they may breed at incredible rates in this jar.
In normal aquariums their presence means that the water is low quality, if you see them it may mean you are overfeeding or not cleaning the water effectively.
It would make sense for a stagnant (meaning slow or non moving water) river to contain these guys, as water that is not moving will not be very sanitary.
This is why if you were lost in the wilderness and had to drink water, you should only drink from running streams. As it naturally filters itself.
Mind you, not to the degree of drinkable water, so you shouldnât be drinking wild water unless you filter it properly. Just because its safer than stagnant water it doesnât mean its safe to drink in general.
While looking at what the previous worm could be, I believe that the one from earlier could be a Planaria!
CW // worm
Planaria are the doofiest looking dudes Iâve ever set my eyes on and they are shaped like a friend. However, they may pose issues to the Kingfisher system.
Planaria are the doofiest looking dudes Iâve ever set my eyes on and they are shaped like a friend. However, they may pose issues to the Kingfisher system.
Planarians are a type of flatworm, and they have many sub species. They can live in both salt water and even may dwell on land! They show the ability to regenerate body parts, so if you cut the tail off of one they would simply grow it back.
Their two âeyesâ detect the light intensity, and they will typically move away from light. These receptors are called their ocelli.
Theyâre made up of three germ layers, the ectoderm, mesoderm, and the endoderm and are acoleomate (which means they have a completely solid body with no cavities). They also only have one opening to their digestive track, meaning they eat and poop out of the same hole, gross!
A wiggler and another worm
It is incredibly hard to see but we have a tiny orange fellow, in the top right at the start, just floating around here
I think thats all the footage I have today! Please check in tomorrow for more, which friend did you find the most interesting today?
Do you find this thread interesting and informative so far?
Iâll also say! While we didnât get footage of any, we have had sightings of a few isopods, and some tiny white fluttery fellows. I will try get them on camera for you all!
