JOURNAL OF MICROBIOLOGY & BIOLOGY EDUCATION, May 2012, p.

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Copyright 2012 American Society for Microbiology DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/jmbe.v13i1.362

Tips & Tools

Development of a Myxomycete Photoguide as a

Teaching Tool for Microbial Taxonomy
Sittie Aisha B. Macabago1 and Thomas Edison E. dela Cruz2*
of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the East, Manila, Philippines
2Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines

1Department

INTRODUCTION

PROCEDURE

The field of taxonomy deals with the identification,

classification, and naming of organisms. It is an integral and
important part of any course in biology. Thus, any budding
biologist should master some techniques needed in identifying, grouping, and naming organisms. Taxonomists often use
dichotomous keys and identification guides in published
literature. However, not many researchers or students have
access to these journal articles or taxonomic books. Recently, web-based identification guides have been developed
to aid modern taxonomists in identifying organisms. These
guides are readily available for those who have access to the
Internet. Some web-based identification guides were made
for different groups of animals, plants, and fungi (http://www.
discoverlife.org/) (5). Unfortunately, these guides can only
be used wherever Internet access is available. Thus, these
cannot often be brought directly to the field for quick and
easy identification of any collected specimens. Since we believe that field experience is necessary for any students of
biology or microbiology, we developed a photoguide on the
myxomycetes we collected from Lubang Island, Occidental
Mindoro, Philippines. This photoguide is intended to aid
both classroom and laboratory learning of a specific group
of eukaryotic microoganisms, the plasmodial slime molds or
myxomycetes. It provides a quick visual aid in the identification of myxomycetes found in Lubang Island, but may also be
present in any other terrestrial forest areas of the country
and of the world.
The guide contains photographs of representative and
commonly encountered species of myxomycetes. At the
back of each species, a corresponding description provides
taxonomic information about the organism. This back-toback leaflet also serves as a tool to disseminate information
for ecotourism and conservation activities. In this paper, we
described how the photoguide was developed, and we used
myxomycetes or slime molds as the model organism. The
procedure can also be used to create photoguides for any
living organisms.

Collection and identification of specimens

*Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, University of Santo Tomas,
Espaa 1015 Manila, Philippines. Phone: 632-406-1611 local
8297. Fax: 632-731-4031. E-mail: tedelacruz@mnl.ust.edu.ph.
Volume 13, Number 1

Field specimens of myxomycetes were collected on decaying logs and ground leaf litter from the island of Lubang in
Occidental Mindoro, Philippines. Additional specimens were
also obtained from moist chambers set up for substrates collected from the field. Moist chambers were prepared following the protocol of Stephenson and Stempen (3). Identification
of collected specimens was done following characterization
of gross morphological characters of the fruiting bodies and
spores of each species under a stereomicroscope and/or
compound light microscope. Characters included the type
of the fruiting body, color of the spore mass, description of
stalk and base, the presence of internal structures such as
capillitium, lime crystals, and the size, shape, and texture of the
individual spores.All morphometric data were then compared
with identification keys and published literature (e.g., Stephenson and Stempen (3)), and Web-based electronic databases
(e.g., SYNKey (2)), and the Eumycetozoan Project (4). Naming
of the identified myxomycetes followed the taxonomic keys
in the website http://nomen.eumycetozoa.com (1). Identities of representative species were also confirmed by our
collaborator, Professor Dr. Steven L. Stephenson, University
of Arkansas. Photographs of the collected specimens were
captured using Moticam 1000 (Motic, USA).
Development of the myxomycete photoguide
Twenty-four collected specimens of myxomycetes from
Lubang Island were chosen for the photoguide (Fig. 1).These
species were recorded to be common in the study area, and
can easily be observed both in moist chambers and in the
field. Close-up photographs of the specimens were taken
and arranged in a single PowerPoint slide. Other computer
software such as Microsoft Word and Adobe Photoshop
can be used to create this page. In each photograph, a scale
bar was added for easy reference to the size of the species.
A second slide was created containing relevant information
about the organism.
It is useful to use taxonomic descriptions that best
describe the species. When arranging the taxonomic description, be sure to prepare it in such a manner that the
description will fall exactly behind the described species.

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MACABAGO and dela CRUZ: Photoguide as Teaching Tool

FIGURE 1. The myxomycete photoguide of Lubang Island, Occidental Mindoro, Philippines. The front side (A) illustrates the collected and
identified specimens with a scale bar showing their measured and/or approximate sizes, while the back page (B) provides concise descriptions
of each of the illustrated species of myxomycetes.

Colored copies of the photoguides were then printed

back-to-back in a single paper or in two separate sheets,
then glued together. The printed photoguides were finally
laminated in clear, hard plastic sheets. These plastic sheets
protect the photoguide from natural elements, such as rain,
when used in the field.

CONCLUSION
This developed myxomycete photoguide is a quick
visual aid that can be used in the identification of commonly encountered myxomycetes in Lubang Island or in
any terrestrial forest ecosystems. The front side of the
photoguide showed high-resolution photographs of the
collected myxomycetes. This allowed easy comparison of
the specimens found in the field. This is important when
one would like to have a quick assessment of the species
present in the study area. Knowing what are present in
a given habitat can give an insight into the diversity of
species found in that particular habitat. Directly opposite
the picture on the back side of the photoguide were brief
descriptions of the myxomycetes. These descriptions
contained key feature morphological characters that are
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needed to identify the species. The specimens can be collected in the field and brought to the classroom or laboratory for observation of their morphological features. The
descriptions provided in this photoguide can also aid the
students in correctly identifying their collected specimens.
The myxomycete photoguide is a tool meant for field
collections and classroom-based studies of myxomycetes
by college students and researchers. However, this onepage, back-to-back brochure can also be used by younger
students in the elementary and high school levels. The
simplicity of the created photoguide allowed for easy
comprehension by these students. The photoguide can
also be prepared cheaply and in large quantities. This backto-back leaflet can also serve as material to disseminate
information to tourists and enthusiasts who are interested
in searching for myxomycetes in their areas. Additional
photoguides can be developed to represent other organisms found in the area.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Our gratitude goes to Prof. Dr. Steven L. Stephenson,
University of Arkansas for his aid in identifying some of

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MACABAGO and dela CRUZ: Photoguide as Teaching Tool

our specimens, and to Dr. Ka-Lai Pang for allowing us to

use his resources at the National Taiwan Ocean University,
Taiwan, and to the Martin-Baker Research Award given by
the Mycological Society of America for the research grant of
our project on the biodiversity and taxonomy of plasmodial
slime molds (myxomycetes) in Lubang Island, Occidental
Mindoro, Philippines. The authors declare that there are
no conflicts of interest.

Volume 13, Number 1

References
1. Lado, C. 2005-2011. An on-line nomenclatural information
system of Eumycetozoa. http://www.nomen.eumycetozoa.com.
2. Mitchell, D. 2008. Synoptic key to the Myxomycetes
(SynKey). UK.
3. Stephenson, S. L., and H. Stempen. 1994. Myxomycetes:
a handbook of slime molds. Timber Press Inc., Portland, OR.
4. University of Arkansas. 2010.The Eumycetozoan project.
http://slimemold.uark.edu/index.htm.
5. University of Georgia. 2011. Discover life. http://www.
discoverlife.org/.

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