On Wednesday, November 10, I observed that all my previously identified organisms Cyclops, Stylaria, Palpomyia Biting Midge (a larvae) and Hydrachna had disappeared. I thought that the organisms had been eaten by the Hydrachna, a water mite that feeds on crustaceans and larvae but the Hydrachna was also gone
Thompson, Gerald. The Pond. 1st ed. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1984. 188
I did see two new organisms Actinophrys on the soil and many Stenostomums. Actinophrys are freshwater microbes that have spines and axopods that come out from their center. Prey sticks to these axopods and then cytoplasm surrounds the prey as can be seen below.
Margulis, Lynn. Five Kingdoms. 2nd ed. New York, NY: W.H. Freeman, 1988. 112
The Stenostomums is a Planaria, a flatworm. They have two eyespots and are the smallest animals where you can see a tale and a head. It attaches to its prey by suction to its pharnx and shreds its prey while eating.
Baker, Jeffrey. The Study of Biology. 4th ed. Menlo Park, CA: Addison-Wesley, 1982. 886
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