Amoeba - the shape shifter

This amoeba was found in a gunky water leached out of a wicking bed garden box. Amoebae are unicellular (one celled) organisms, in this case a member of the protozoa, which are normally microscopic is size, and super fascinating as they are true shape shifters. They are able to morph the shape of their cell membrane into seemingly unending variations without restrictions through cellular protrusions called pseudopods. They also engulf their prey, usually bacteria, using these pseudopod formations. Amoebae play an essential role in soil and water ecosystem nutrient cycling by ingesting bacteria and releasing the excess nutrients that bacterial provide, which become available to plants. This one was recorded at 400x magnification. The video is 1.37 minutes long sped up from a 6 minute recording. It sped it up 2x 4x 8x and 20x to show the movement of the organism at various speeds.
Captured on the 16th of December 2022 at Wilkesdale, QLD, Australia.
Support more biodiversity videos / sandratuszynska