Researching Bacteria
Matthew
How do bacteria move?
Some bacteria have small whip like structures called flagella. They move their flagella back and forth to propel themselves forward.
Different bacteria could have one flagellum or many flagella. Some bacteria don’t have flagella so they can’t move on their own. They need
air currents, water currents, clothing or other objects to move.
Where do they live?
Bacteria live in almost every environment. For example: in soil, in air, in animals and in plants.
How are bacteria different to viruses?
Viruses need a living host to multiply and bacteria can grow on both living and non-living surfaces. Viruses aren’t really living, they are
information (RNA and DNA) that is looking for a suitable living host.
How quickly do bacteria reproduce? Try to show this pattern as a graph or other visual display.
Species B is bacteria, species A is not bacteria
What do bacteria look like
Bacteria are very small. They are usually 0.5 to 5 micrometers in length. There are three basic shapes of bacteria: round (cocci), Rod shaped
(bacilli) and spiral (borrelia). Round bacteria can vary from looking like just one circle to looking like many circles stuck together in different
combinations. Rod shaped bacteria can vary from looking like one rod to looking like many rods beside each other or in a line. Spiral
bacteria can vary from looking like a simple spiral to a complex spiral.
What are three basic shapes of bacteria?
The 3 basic shapes that bacteria can be are round, rod shaped or spiral. The round bacteria are called cocci, the rod shaped
bacteria are called bacilli and the spiral bacteria are called borrelia.
How are bacteria classified? Name the two large classes.
Bacteria are classified between Eubacteria and Archaebacteria. Eubacteria are classified by their shapes. Archaebacteria live in
extreme environments such as hot springs and sea vents.
Where have bacteria been located? Name as many places as possible.
Bacteria have been located in the human gut, underground, on the sea floor, in soil, in the ocean, in ice, in boiling water, high in the
atmosphere and many other places.
How many bacteria live on Earth?
The number of bacteria that live on earth is equivalent to the 5 times 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 or 5 x 10^30
What do bacteria eat? How do they take in their food?
Some bacteria are heterotrophs which absorb dead organic material and some bacteria are autotrophs. Heterotrophic bacteria
use enzymes to break up the food so it will come in contact with them. Autotrophic bacteria make their own food using either
photosynthesis (using sun, carbon dioxide and water) or chemosynthesis (using carbon dioxide, water and chemicals like
ammonia)
Using the websites listed below and any others that you can find, research these questions about
bacteria. You can type into the boxes and cut and paste pictures from websites. Please do not cut
and paste text from the web (or the plagiarism monster will get you! You need to write the answers
in your own words.
Useful Websites:
http://www.bacteriamuseum.org/cms/Bacteria/what-are-bacteria.htm
Virtual Museum of Bacteria
Counting bacteria
Introduction to the Spirochetes
Bacteria