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LIVE ROTIFER BIRTH
An Amateur Microscopy movie
© Microscopy-UK 1997
This is a Downloaded multimedia ZIPPED version of one of our web pages!

This is a video sequence of an event that is rarely seen. A rotifer giving birth to live young! Most species of rotifer are egg layers where eggs are laid either outside or inside the body; these hatch into live young. However, some genus of rotifers give birth to live young. The video shows a rotifer of the bdelloidea class and genus - philodinidae. The species shown does give birth to live young. The birth occurred while the author was watching the rotifer on a slide with cover slip! The mother seems to contract quite markedly during the birth before the single youngster is ejected from the posterior end. The youngster is fully formed and not much smaller than its mother. The mother was lethargic after birth, unlike the lively youngster. Rotifers of this species are typically up to 500um long.

Click twice SLOWLY on the video image to replay the movie!

The video sequence was filmed by David Walker, a keen amateur microscopist, (and the current editor of Micscape Magazine). It is just one of the amazing slidesets which can be viewed with the astonishing virtual Microscope called Microscope for the PC!




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Please comment to: Dave Walker
All content (c) www.microscopy-uk.org.uk and contributors - 1997


This content is one of Micscape Magazine's Amateur Movies. Please note that all content is copyright of Microscopy-UK and our contributors. You are welcome to share this article with friends and colleagues but no permission is granted for commercial use. All rights remain strictly with Microscopy-UK to protect the interests of our contributors. Our site is at http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk and you may wish to bookmark the page you're reading now to ensure you can come and visit us in the future.

This is a DOWNLOADED file.
This version includes a fully-working avi with synchronised sound. When unzipped, use your browser off-line and load the file called: WALKER1X.HTM

Microscopy-UK is a Non-Profit making group made up of people offering their time freely to promote further Amateur Study of our world though the use of Microscopes in a non-professional environment. We have been established for about 18 months prior to the creation of this article. If you are interested in what we are doing, please contact us. We love to hear from folks around the world.