Field Notes: Hydras (Patreon)

Coming up next week on Deep Look: hydras! Named after a ferocious multiheaded monster from Greek mythology, the real hydra is a tiny animal related to jellyfish and sea anemones. These freshwater predators have an almost otherworldly ability to heal themselves and keep from aging. Maybe they can teach us how to stay young, too.

They’re so small that lead producer and cinematographer Josh Cassidy filmed the hydras in little homemade glass aquariums made out of microscope slides that he glued together.

To get the extra close-up shots of the hydra, Josh filmed with a dissecting microscope using a technique called dark-field microscopy. That makes the hydra appear to float in empty space.

This episode premieres next Tuesday, April 20, but Patreon supporters will get a sneak peek this Friday!

Photo credits: Josh Cassidy/KQED