A strange transparent organism

After being collected from a paddy field, the sample was put on 1% agar plate with a drop of distilled water and kept for a few days.

The body of this organism is transparent like a plastic bag. Small particles of various sizes are moving inside.

Commentary by Prof. Yuji Tsukii, Hosei University
This unknown organism of about 20-30μm long is covered by a transparent gel. Four seconds after the start of the video, its body suddenly contracts. If this organism were Vorticella, the contracting left half would be the oral part (peristome) and the right half would connect to the stalk (which we cannot see). Vorticella sometimes secretes a gel-like substance to protect itself against a hostile or unfavorable environment, but we cannot identify this organism as Vorticella with the information available. Euglena cells are usually cylindrical or long and tapered like a spindle, but in the field I frequently find Euglena exhibiting such a ball-like shape. When the environment becomes hostile, the cell becomes round and stands still, and may secrete a gel around itself. This form of Euglena is often found in autumn.

Sampling Date : 16 October 2006

Sampling Site : KASHIMADAI paddy field  Google Map