Field identification of moldy hay with foldscope

Moldy Sudan Grass Hay

As a test of concept, I wanted to determine if a Foldscope cellphone microscope could be used for field identification of fungal growth on hay.  The answer is yes for the darker colored organisms.  I took a tease tape of the suspected hay material.  The 3M clear Scotch tape was attached to a microscope slide using clear fingernail polish as a mounting fluid.  The Epicoccum spp. and Alternaria spp. spores can be seen.  The Cladosporium spp. spores are tougher to pick out in the background.

Photo of Epicoccum spp. through Foldscope attached to Samsung Galaxy S-5 camera

Photo of Epicoccum spp. cropped and enlarged with Adobe Photoshop

Photo of Epicoccum spp., Alternaria spp.  and Cladosporium spp.  taken with Samsung Galaxy S-5 camera through the eyepiece of Nikon Microscope 400x.  The distance between 5 and 6 is 25 microns.