Protists - Living Material

Specially Prepared “Real-Life” Combinations
The world is teeming with a wide variety of micro life, making studying samples of pond water complicated especially for the beginning student. To lessen the confusion, Ward's has prepared different culture mixes that reflect protist combinations that occur in the real world, yet eliminates the hundreds of other life-forms found in a collected sample.

Very large ciliate. Feeds on colpidium. Hay medium.
Characterized by cilia; nearly all possess two types of nuclei.

This organism is easily recognized by its trumpet-shape and blue coloration. It is quite large (approx. 2 mm) and is a good option for students that are just starting to look at the microscopic world.

This organism is easily recognized by its trumpet-shape, and can commonly be found in freshwater ponds and streams. It reproduces by budding.

Spirogyra is a genus of filamentous green algae with chloroplasts arranged in a helical (spiral) pattern.

Ward's® Live Diatom cultures

Pink to bright rose color.
Characterized by cilia; nearly all possess two types of nuclei.

Paramecium multimicronucleatumis one of the largest species of Paramecium. This ciliate contains a single macronucleus and four or more micronuclei. Grows in Dilute Alfalfa medium (Hay Medium).

One jar containing a mixture of 6 different genera of algae. Each algae is cultured individually in Ward's laboratories, and mixed together immediately prior to shipment to ensure an adequate supply of each organism.

Extremely small euglenoid. Usually doesn’t rotate when swimming. Scavenger. Hay medium.

Characterized by flagella; lacks plastids.

Characterized by a lack of rigid cellulosic walls, instead these organisms have pellicles made of protein. They store paramylon instead of starch.

Organisms with Characteristics of Two Kingdoms

Water mold and fish parasite. Demonstrates sporangia and oospores. Grows on wheat seed, cucumber seed, or hemp seed in water environment. Reproduces sexually and asexually. Incubation temperature 25°C.

Cell walls made of cellulose; feeds by extending hyphae into host's tissue.

Examples of Organisms That Grow in Colonies

Ideal for comparative study, the four cultures included in this set represent green algae's variety of physical morphologies.

Bring your high school biology text to life with the algal cultures included in this set of 12 cultures commonly found in high-school textbooks.