Critters - Visible And Microscopic Organisms That Naturally Occur In Our Ponds And Aquariums

Updated - August 24, 2010 - New link added
Updated - August 4, 2010 - New link added

This is just a quick blog to be a permanent home to all the links I have to some good sites that already cover this topic very well.

http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/Tank_critters.shtml

http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/Tank_critters2.shtml

http://microscopy-uk.org.uk/index.html?http://microscopy-uk.org.uk/pond/index.html

http://www3.sympatico.ca/drosera1/fish/worms.htm

http://www.fishpondinfo.com/animals/micro.htm

Here's a new link I just got from the AquariaCentral.com forums.  It even has lots of pictures. (Thanks jpappy789)
http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum/showthread.php/34333-Bugs-you-might-encounter-in-your-aquarium

Here's another new link from an AC thread... (Thanks Phosaurus)
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/shrimp-other-invertebrates/40061-whats-bug-how-recognize-them.html

These next three very good resources are no longer found with a *normal* internet search as the websites have closed down for various reasons... most likely due to the world economy. Fortunately, the Internet Archive Wayback Machine saves/archives copies of almost all websites so you can still see the original content of the sites. They may take a little longer to fully load on your computer, especially sites with lots of pictures. See my blog about the Internet Archives Wayback Machine by clicking the link under "Labels" on the right.

http://web.archive.org/web/20070202015209/http://members.aol.com/larval1/critters.htm

http://web.archive.org/web/20070523055718/http://www.menunkatuck.org/pages/micro.htm

http://web.archive.org/web/20060716164019/http://www.menunkatuck.org/pages/micro2.htm

Now, while many of the above critters are visible to the naked eye, many others will only be visible using a microscope.  Here's a simple and concise article on "Selection and Use of a Microscope for Aquarists by Bob Blaho" - http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Blaho_Microscope_for_Aquarists.html

I'll be back to add more to this blog later! ;-)

Lenny Vasbinder aka GoldLenny