Specimen: Fresh stool or fixed (5-10% Formalin or SAF) - Expected results: Spores: ovoid, refractile; spore wall is bright pinkish red Polar tube: seen as a stripe or as a diagonal line across the spore Bacteria and debris: stain blue, some stain red - If the stool is semi-formed or formed, the amount of artifact material is much greater, and the spores are much harder to detect and identify. - The number of spores varies according to the stool consistency (the more diarrheic the stool, the more spores that are present).