Lichens and mosses and bears, oh my!
By Chelsie Vandaveer
January 16, 2002
killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5~~
Suggested Reading—>Click here.
Killer Smart Store Links—>Click here.
Killer Picks: Wollemi Pine, greatest living fossils discovered in the 20th century—>Click here.
Talking Microscope, Lab-quality Microscope, Discovery Macro Microscope—>Click here.
In 1776, Lazzaro Spallanzani repeated an experiment performed 74 years earlier by the inventor of the microscope, Anton van Leeuwenhok. He swept dust from the gutters on his roof and added sterilized water to it. Through the microscope, amazing creatures rose from the dust. Spallanzani called them tardigrades or "slow walkers". Thomas Huxley nicknamed them 'water bears'.
Water bears are minute creatures, ranging from 0.2 to 1.2 mm in length. They have been found in every environment on Earth from the deep ocean to mountaintops and from the tropics to the poles. Water bears are classified to their own phylum for they are like nothing else. When the climate is too dry or cold, the water bear retracts its eight stumpy legs and forms a tun.
The tun is a state of cryptobiosis (hidden life) or anhydrobiosis (life without water) when all metabolism ceases. No other living thing can stop all functions and still be classified as alive. When the water bear is in the tun state, it can be picked up by the winds and lofted hundreds of miles. A water bear was revived from a moss specimen dried over 100 years ago.
After rain has revived the mosses and lichen, the water bears come out of dormancy to feed. Although, only discovered 236 years ago, 700+ species have been described. Some prefer lichen habitat, some mosses, some are carnivorous, and others are vegetarian.
When there has been too much rain and their habitat is inundated, water bears swell into miniature water balloons or anoxybiosis (life without air or oxygen). The bears float and go wherever the water washes them. When the rains dry, the bears shrink to shape and resume their life.
In the tun state, the bears can survive for 20 days at minus 200 degrees Celsius. Some species survive boiling water. Others tolerate 250 times the x-rays that would kill a human. Water bears are the only animals to have their photos taken in a Scanning Electron Microscope and survive the vacuum and electron bombardment.
Hidden among the lichen and mosses are bears. It's kind of nice knowing such creatures live in the garden.
The Open Directory Project has 14 links to sites about tardigrades. To view photographs and learn more about water bears click on the link:
http://dmoz.org/Science/Biology/Flora_and_Fauna/Animalia/Tardigrades/
killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5~~
Suggested Reading:
How did lichen make the French see red? Plants that Changed History - January 15, 2002
What was the scarlet of the Aztecs? Renfield's Garden - July 24, 2002
How did litmus come to be a test? What's in a Name? - January 18, 2002
Why is star moss strange? Renfield's Garden - July 25, 2002
Killer Smart Store Links:
National Geographic—>Click here
Discovery Channel Store—>Click here.
A&E/The History Channel—>Click here.
Museum Store Company—>Click here.
NOVICA—>Click here.
The NASA Space Store—>Click here.
Wollemi Pine
National Geographic®
Exclusively from National Geographic, this survivor from the age of the dinosaurs is one of the greatest living fossils discovered in the 20th century. The Wollemi pine is one of the world's oldest and rarest tree species, belonging to a 200-million-year-old plant family thought to have been extinct for more than two million years. Previously known only from fossil records, it was presumed extinct until a single tree was found in the Wollemi National Park, Australia, in 1994. Subsequent research discovered 100 adult trees that have survived in a single canyon in this wild and rugged area.
Click here to view canyon, trees and fossil record.
You can assist in the conservation effort and enjoy the unique opportunity to ensure the continued survival of this rare species by giving the tree as a gift or growing your own. Suitable for indoor container gardening or as a landscape tree in certain areas of the U.S. Comes with a care manual with the full story about the discovery and fascinating history of the Wollemi pine. Comes in a copper-colored container and will be approximately 10''H when shipped. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of these plants will fund ongoing conservation research.
Click here to get your Wollemi Pine and assist in the conservation effort.
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Talking Microscope
National Geographic®
Here's the perfect first microscope for your budding biologists! This electronic learning game enriches a child's interest in science with easy-focus viewing and an amazing interactive feature: The microscope actually talks, asking questions and providing information.
Click here.
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National Geographic Lab-quality Microscope
National Geographic®
Made from solid metal, our microscope offers a superior viewing experience normally found only in laboratory models. A single objective lens meeting DIN optical standards, and two separate eyepieces of optical glass, offer 80-power and 200-power magnifications to reveal unseen details with exceptional clarity.
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A rack-and-pinion focus system with brass gears effortlessly adjusts to smoothly bring slides into precise focus. Features both mirror and electric illumination for maximum brightness. A complete accessory set includes everything a budding microbiologist needs.
Click here.
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Discovery Macro Microscope
Discovery Channel®
"Excellent. The size is just perfect for my son's small hands. They have really enjoyed using this microscope…the whole family has!"
P.C., Pilot Mountain, NC
With both micro and macro settings, this microscope lets you see everything from butterfly wings to plant cell walls.
Discovery Macro Microscope, Click here.
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- Features:Kid-friendly microscope with real power.
- Both micro and macro settings.
- Explore objects from 40 to 400 times their actual size.
- Super-clear images at every level.
- Pivoting die-cast metal base with high-impact plastic body.
- Soft textured handgrips.
- Flexible, 360-degree rotating eyepiece.
- Precision ground metal lenses with optical quality glass.
- Lenses are interchangeable with most standard, research-quality microscopes.
- Independent light source focuses beam on (or through) the specimen.
- Lens bulbs are easy to replace.
- 2 month manufacturer's warranty.
Includes:
- Five vials of remarkable specimens to examine.
- Five prepared slides: two insect cross sections, two plant cross-sections and one slide with a real 900-year old, Peruvian mummy wrap!
- Tweezers.
- Eye-dropper.
- Measuring beaker.
- Spoon.
- Blank slides for collecting your own specimens.
- Experiment booklet.
Explore the beauty and mystery of the world around you, from small delights to microscopic miracles.
Safety warning: This product contains small parts that may present a choking hazard for young children.
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