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Category: Start, Microscopy: Pic of the Day

Micro-Pictures of the Week

Marine red algae - Zoomed in

Many marine algae show a phenomenon called "structural iridescence", which lets the branches glitter with strong colors when under strong light. Iridescence is usually caused by multiple reflections and subsequent interference of light on surfaces. Popular examples of iridescence are the colors of soap bubbles, oil slick, beetles and butterflys, peacock feathers, mother of pearl. Some fish like the neon tetra also show iridescent colors. The biological function of this iridescence in algae is still unknown and a subject of ongoing research.



We found these algae in a reef tank. The beautiful colors caught our attention and we decided to "zoom in" on these algae. With the biological microscope Science Infinity Microscope we captured a series of pictures with slightly different focus to give a sharp image of the cell structure. With color saturation enhanced, the MikroCam Pro HDMI 5MP shows the iridescence even with transmitted light. However, it is faint compared to the naked eye view. So we used the metallurgical microscope Science MTL-201 to observe the algae in reflected light mode with the same high magnification. It is not easy to capture, but the colors really stand out.

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