Paramecium captured under a fluorescence microscope with the Jenoptik C3 microscope camera.
Paramecium are heterotrophs. Their common form of prey is bacteria. A single organism has the ability to eat 5,000 bacteria per day. Paramecium also feed on yeast, algae and small protozoa. They may eject trichocyts when they detect food, in order to capture their prey. These trichocyts are filled with proteins and are sometimes also used in self defense.
