Micro New Yorker

Our tiny community members from the nature

In New York City, there are trillions of species of wildlife co-living with us. The urban biodiversity is way beyond our imagination. The tiny urban creatures are everywhere from the soil in the park to a piece of rotten cake on the dining table. We have countless symbiotic community members sharing the city with us.

 

Here are some samples of micro New Yorkers collected from the parks in Manhattan. These microorganisms play important roles in the circulation of our urban ecosystem. We rely on these tiny community members for activities such as composting and gardening.

Central Park North Woods

Fresh leaves from Central Park

Microorganisms start to emerge on agar

Microorganisms expand on agar

Microorganisms spread all over the dish

Red microorganisms expand all over the dish

Lives turning dark

Central Park Literary Walk

Specimen from Central Park Literary Walk

Microorganisms appearing on agar

Microorganisms growing on agar

Pick a small dot from the red microorganisms to a new dish

The red tiny creatures thriving on agar

These are the tiny community members we share our city with. They facilitate the ecosystem in our park.

Madison Square Park

Leaf and wood chip from the park

View from the bottom side of the dish

Microorganisms growing on agar

Pick a red dot to a new dish

The bottom side of the dish

Red microorganisms growing on agar

The dish turning yellow

The color remains nicely

The agar starts to dry out

Union Square

Leaves from Madison Square Park

Microorganisms start to emerge

Microorganisms spread wider

Leaves turning dark

Agar starts to dry

Microorganisms turning dark

Pineapple Molds

Green molds from pineapple skin

Molds start to grow and spread

Molds spread wider

Molds continue to grow

The dish covered with green

Molds start to dry up

After the specimens are dried, pour resin into the dishes to cover the specimens so that they are preserved and solid.

Exhibition at an open studio