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Euglena sanguinea
Euglenoids are solitary cells that have characteristics of both animals (movement and ingestion of nourishment) and plants (chloroplasts). The red pigment helps protect the cells from light that is too intense and then makes the water look red.
Pond in local nature reserve
The red euglena can turn green as well and then it may look as if it is no longer in the pond. It can be an indicator of organic pollution.
Spotted on Nov 28, 2019
Submitted on Jan 26, 2020
6 Comments
Well, thanks for the nomination, Mark! It is an unusual organism. When I first spotted it, I saw birds drinking from the water and wondered if they would get sick but that does not appear to have happened. I guess the red color makes it look like it might have contaminated the water.
Your spotting has been nominated for the Spotting of the Week. The winner will be chosen by the Project Noah Rangers based on a combination of factors including: uniqueness of the shot, status of the organism (for example, rare or endangered), quality of the information provided in the habitat and description sections. There is a subjective element, of course; the spotting with the highest number of Ranger votes is chosen. Congratulations on being nominated!
Weird and wonderful.
Good to know Maria. Thanks.
Hi, Leuba! I have looked online to see if there is a connection but it appears they are just different species of Euglena. Encyclopedia Britannica comments: "Some species, especially E. viridis and E. sanguinea, can develop large toxic populations of green or red “blooms” in ponds or lakes with high nitrogen content." So perhaps they just share that characteristic in contrast to some other species. Thanks for your comment!
I've only ever heard of Euglena viridis. Is there any connection between E.vridis and the green form of E.sanguinea- do you know?
Apparently E.viridis at times form a green film on ponds.
Interesting spotting Maria.