Bacteria under microscope

[smhjn17]

Can heterotrophic bacteria be observed clearly under a compound microscope, like those on stale food

[MonDie]

I'm not sure what you mean. Almost all bacteria are visible, if only barely, under the maximum resolution possible for visible light, but you'll usually only see cocci (spheres) vs bacilli (rods) or possibly vibrio (curved rod). Maybe heterotrophic bacteria are alittle bigger. Eukaryotes, even single-celled eukaryotes, are bigger.

Pertaining to bacteria, staining techniques can identify them and/or emphasize the flagellum. Agar plates can grow colonies from individuals, revealing their different division patterns.

Edited June 25, 2015 by MonDie

[CharonY]

Morphologically you cannot distinguish the metabolic capacities of the bacteria. There is also no correlation with size. Also, cell size can vary signficantly within a species, depending on nutritional status (especially in those with marked length growth).

[GM11]

Can heterotrophic bacteria be observed clearly under a compound microscope, like those on stale food

Yes absolutely. However I suspect your question is more along the lines of can you observe the behaviour of ingestion.

If this was the actual question then again the answer is yes, the easiest way though is via a flask culture and special media. What you observe is predominately the dye absortion.