A World in a Drop of Water

By Alvin Silverstein, Virginia Silverstein

Part of the Dover Children's Science Books series

Explore the hidden world of microscopic pond creatures and their survival battles.

4.0/5 Goodreads · 128 ratings

64 pages

$6.95Save 7%

In stock. Also at Amazon or Bookshop.

Bookroo's summary

Dive into the unseen universe of pond water, where amoebas hunt, paramecia flee, and hydras reign. With a microscope, uncover the secrets of these tiny creatures' lives, from the dual-natured euglena to the accordion-like rotifer. Witness their survival tactics and intricate dances in a world where every drop teems with life. Discover how these single-celled organisms eat, reproduce, and defend themselves in their microscopic domain. Are you ready to explore the wonders lurking in a single drop of water?

From the publisher

Within every drop of pond water lurks an invisible world, alive with an amazing variety of microscopic animals. And with the help of this book and a microscope, you can bring these tiny creatures into focus and discover the ways in which they live.

You’ll trace the path of a blob-like amoeba as it stretches out its pseudopods to hunt and gobble up its prey, and you’ll see the life-or-death water ballet of a slipper-shaped paramecium as it swims away from its mortal enemy, the pincushion-shaped suctorian. You’ll also meet the euglena, classified as both plant and animal; the rotifer, a creature with two wheels of whirling hairlike projections that help it move by squeezing in and out like an accordion; and the incredible hydra, a fearsome bully that constantly threatens other small animals with its crown of grasping tentacles.

With this book, your key to the world of single-celled organisms, you’ll learn fascinating lessons about how these strange animals eat, reproduce, and defend themselves. Enter their microscopic domain and see for yourself!

At a glance