These tiny, barrel-shaped unicellular organisms called Coleps are feasting on the body of a crustacean larva in real time. . Coleps are single-celled organisms with a rigid, barrel-shaped body covered in calcium carbonate plates integrated into their cell. This armor functions almost like an exoskeleton, protecting them from hungry mouths. . Coleps are extremely common in ponds and lakes, and they behave like piranhas. When an organism is injured, the damage releases chemical signals into the wa

This is a unicellular organism, Dileptus, and it’s about to take a bite out of another unicellular organism. . Dileptus has an elephant-trunk-like structure that it waves around to catch food. It might look harmless, but that trunk hides tiny structures called extrusomes. When it touches a potential meal, the extrusomes shoot out, piercing the other cell and releasing digestive enzymes. In this clip, a Spirostomum loses part of its body but manages to escape, while Dileptus feeds on the dissolve

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