Observations: The C Elegans are very small worms that bunch up around what looks like eggs. They don't seem to be moving around at all. They are translucent and look slimy. They only have particles inside them from what I could see. They seem to be clumped up around each other. Some are solo.
Questions: Why do they clump up together? Why do they eat e.coli? What are their predators? Do they eat anything else? Why do hermaphrodites mate with males but not with each other? How populated is soil with C. Elegans?
Research: C. Elegans are free-living, non-parasitic soil nematodes. They are small (1mm) and they feed on bacteria. They are hermaphrodites (male and female) They can sometimes become males if the 6th chromosome is XO. Hermaphrodites can self-fertilize and mate with males but cannot fertilize each other. Hermaphrodites are the most common gender and when hermaphrodites mate with males, 50% will be male, 50% will be hermaphrodites. Hermaphrodites can birth 300-350 offspring if they self-fertilize and more if it makes with males. C-Elegans birth in 3 days and live for only about 2-3 weeks after that. C. Elegans are used for scientific research because of their simple molecular structure.
SOIL COLLECTION:
Dark Brown (found in Vetter's garden): looks wet, looks crumbly and similar to the light brown dirt. There is also some wood chips in the dirt.
Light Brown (found by the school dumpster) it is much dryer and similar to the dark brown dirt.
We did not find any nematodes in our dirt samples.
Questions: Why do they clump up together? Why do they eat e.coli? What are their predators? Do they eat anything else? Why do hermaphrodites mate with males but not with each other? How populated is soil with C. Elegans?
Research: C. Elegans are free-living, non-parasitic soil nematodes. They are small (1mm) and they feed on bacteria. They are hermaphrodites (male and female) They can sometimes become males if the 6th chromosome is XO. Hermaphrodites can self-fertilize and mate with males but cannot fertilize each other. Hermaphrodites are the most common gender and when hermaphrodites mate with males, 50% will be male, 50% will be hermaphrodites. Hermaphrodites can birth 300-350 offspring if they self-fertilize and more if it makes with males. C-Elegans birth in 3 days and live for only about 2-3 weeks after that. C. Elegans are used for scientific research because of their simple molecular structure.
SOIL COLLECTION:
Dark Brown (found in Vetter's garden): looks wet, looks crumbly and similar to the light brown dirt. There is also some wood chips in the dirt.
Light Brown (found by the school dumpster) it is much dryer and similar to the dark brown dirt.
We did not find any nematodes in our dirt samples.