Today we worked on creating the Tullgren funnel, a device designed to capture (and unfortunately, kill) the microscopic organisms that live in our soil. As most of you know, I don’t like the idea of killing things and do my best to avoid doing so. I want us to do this lab, not because I think that microorganisms are insignificant (I actually think they are remarkably significant), but because I truly believe that by studying them you will have more empathy for their existence. Rest assured that we will not be doing any harm to the population of these microbes. Did you know that 90% of the Earth’s biomass comes from microorganisms?BlogWork
Research one of the following organisms that live in our soil. Using the links provided, write a detailed paragraph about the organism.
- mites (Acarina)
- springtails (Collembola)
- earthworms (Annelida)
- termites (Isoptera)
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Isoptera also known as termites are small insects that range up to 3-20 millimeters in body long. It has a pale body, two equal length wings. Termites are like bees they have a queen, worker termites, and soldier termites. You can find the nest in underground or in tree trunks hallow and also alive. The way that these termites are created is that the queen has the eggs which then grow and then it will create more worker bees and also soldier bees which will bring the population of the bees up greatly.
Mites are small spider like creatures that are usually found on the trunk, bark and on the leaves of trees. Mites are Arachnids and are in the Acari class. Mites are lain in eggs then they form into larvae, then a stage called Protonymph, then Deuonymph, then adult hood. They living in their habitat as soil decomposers.
Termites
Termites are one the most best constructing animals in the world. They can build a mound that can last for at least 100 years which is amazing but they are also vermin that can literally destroy your house and can cost hundreds of dollars for repairs. But there are more places to find termites. Your soil in your own backyard. Termites are social insects that live in colonies. What’s so amazing about them is that they can build a mound over five feet tall and they are blind. They live in all the states of Australia and can make their mounds out of spit, dung, and dirt so you can see how that relates to soil.
Earthworms are creatures that can be classified into many different species and can be various sizes. They live in soil, preferring places with more plant matter, but can take shelter in stones. To move through the ground, they first grip with tiny hairs or bristles on their body. Then, they squeeze the many sections of their bodies together, and push forward again. Earthworms eat decaying matter and pass it through their digestive tract and then return it back to the earth. Earthworms help make soil more able to hold water. To breathe, earthworms use their skin. However, they must use special pores on their body to keep that layer wet. Finally, worms are both male and female and lay eggs.
With a pale body and a pair of identical wings the termite measures between 3-20 mL long. They have a queen, workers, and soldiers just like in a bee hive. They can be found underground or in wood ranging from tree trunks to your bedroom wall. Also like bees it's the duty of the queen to have the eggs that become the future workers and soldiers of her termite colony.
Termites are small creatures that live in the soil found all the time in Australia. They have two pairs of wings that are the same size. They have an antenna as long as their head. They eat bark of trees, wood, grass, and many other plants and wood. They live in mounds in the ground. Termites mate and start new groups when they grow up.
Termites are social insects. Many live in tall nesting mounds, sometimes 4 meters high. Some live in wood and eat their way through. Termites eat grass, fungi, wood, humus, bark, and poop. There are several types: workers do all of the chores, soldiers defend against intruders, the queen lays eggs, and the winged alates fly away to start new colonies.
Termites are small insects with wings, that live in colonies and have a queen and workers. Termites live underground, and usually eat humus. Once they mature, they usually go somewhere else to mate and start a new colony.
Termites (Isoptera) are small/medium insects with light, long bodies. Their general size is about 3 - 20mm in length. Termites are not seen too much, but they leave behind a lot of evidence when it comes to wooded areas. They usually do much damage to any wood they dwell in. Termites generally live in large groups or colonies. Just like a few other insects, the queen termite lays several eggs and creates many new workers. Termites are mainly located all around Australia where they could possibly cause a lot of havoc in wooden houses/shelters.
Earth worms live in areas across the globe, they have about 4 major families with a total of 3,000 species. They have small bristles on their body that are used to dig with, they do this by stretching forward and anchoring onto the small pores in the dirt with their bristles, thus pulling their backside forward. They feed on dead organic matter from what ever they may find. they . Worms are all hermaphrodites, which means that they can produce eggs and sperm, but they cannot impregnate themselves. So they to find a mate.
the Springtails Body is an elongated oval. it has an Abdomen with 6 or fewer segments and the Antennae are short and have 4-6 segments. the springtails Size is usually 6 mm or less.there are over 300 species of Springtails in North America. Springtails are usually found in soil and decomposing leaf, also under bark and in decaying wood.
There are at least three thousand different species of earthworms. They live either on land or in bodies of sodium-free water such as lakes, ponds, rivers, etcetera. On land, earthworms can be found in all sorts of places like under rocks, and in plant soil. In order for them to travel throughout the soil, the earthworms must burrow by using the little hairs in front of there mouths as hand shovels to push the dirt out of their way.
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