Chuck Graviss

Student began the lab by breaking
apart lichen into small pieces. The
lichen actually cam e from a limb
that fell out of a tree in my yard.

Students used a pair of plastic
plates, a piece of fine plactic
mesh, and one ply tissue. A hole is
cut in one plate and the mesh and
tissue are layered over the whole
to create a filter. Water is poured
over the lichen and it is allowed
to soak.After the lichen sits for a
day, the water begins to evaporate.

The water bears are actually
reanimated by the water on the
lichen. Water Bears live in a "Tun"
state when the lichen is dry. As
the water level lowers into the
second plate, the water bears
follow the water through the filter
and into the second plate. When the
plates are separated, the
tardigrades are now removed from
the lichen.

The water from the bottom plate is
then poured into the Erlanger Flask.

Students also researched lichen and
found that they are two organisms
(Algae and bacteria)living in a
very unique relationship.
Tardigrades can also be found in
mosses, which is for our next
experiment.

The flask allows for the water to
be poured off, but organisms and a
small amount of debris are left
behind. This last, concentrated
liquid is place in a deep-well slide.

This is a picture of an actual
tardigrade. As you can see, they
have 8 legs and a tail. They move
and shuffle along like a bear.
This lab is a lot of work, but its
all worth it when you see one of
these guys.