Diatom

Yuko ... That's a tricky one. They are old enough to be fossils but in a fossil the natural materials have been replaced by minerals. In effect, they change to stone. Old diatoms remain chemically unchanged no matter how old they are; so technically they never fossilize. You can call them fossils but "only" as an indication of how old they are

Are the long dead diatoms fossils?

Long dead diatoms can be found in huge deposits called diatomaceous earth. They just scooped them up and threw them into the mix.

Interesting! I wonder who came up with the idea originally. And I bet they had to grow them in billions to use them in the toothpaste unless they went to ponds to harvest them.

Yuko ... Well said. They are very glass-like and almost indestructible. Until recently they were used in tooth-paste because of their abrasive qualities.

Looks like a glass object! Beautiful!

incerdible photography!

Thanks for the kind words. Micro spottings are few and far between; but they sure are cool.

Great photo! Project Noah could use more microscopic spottings.

So amazing.