#opercularia

"Of course, these shapes aren't just for fun. An organism's shape is connected to the world it lives in, though sometimes the factors shaping them are beyond our understanding. It can be difficult at times to narrow down why a microbe takes on a particular shape when the reality of the microcosmos is that in any environment, you can find a whole plethora of shapes that might seem to have nothing in common."

Journey to the Microcosmos- The Diversity of Shapes in the Microcosmos

Images Originally Captured by Jam's Germs

"Almost. I mean, they are animals, and at the end of the day, you don't have to be tiny to be a weird-looking animal. But animals have the advantage of many, many cells to build their different bodies. On the other hand, unicellular organisms like bacteria and protist, have less to work with, yet they manage to take on so many strange and unusal forms."

Journey to the Microcosmos- The Diversity of Shapes in the Microcosmos

Images Originally Captured by Jam's Germs

"Much of our understanding of their shape comes from their cytoskeleton, a network of filaments and microtubules that coordinates many essential functions in the cell. When it comes to shape, it might seem unusual to focus on the amoeba, which is so often known for its shapelessness, especially as they move. It's hard not to look at a blob and think of it as accidental, but the forming of pseudopodia--or false feet--to help the amoeba move, requires a complex architecture of microtubules to support this shifting shape."

Journey to the Microcosmos- The Diversity of Shapes in the Microcosmos

"Of course, there are many protists that take on very different shapes, whether that's for defense or for food or for some other reason. There are pediastrum, that form these spiky colonies that protect them from algae eaters. Then there are the Opecularia, which look like little flowers attached to braches, and whose cilia you can see at work gathering food as it floats on by."

Journey to the Microcosmos- The Diversity of Shapes in the Microcosmos

Another SW endemic.

It usually grows in lateritic or granitic soils, or around limestone, but in this case it was growing in deep white sand.

There are about 15 species in the genus, all endemic to Australia, and most have an unpleasant odour.

Terrestrial Diatoms

Pertrich (Opercularia sp)