Scribd
Upload
121 views

Protists

Protists are a diverse group of mostly unicellular eukaryotic organisms. They are classified as members of the kingdom Protista. Protists can be heterotrophic or autotrophic and live in aquatic or moist environments. They are classified based on their nutrition and motility. There are three main groups - animal-like protists which are heterotrophic protozoa, plantlike protists which are photosynthetic algae, and fungus-like protists which are heterotrophic decomposers. Within these groups there are various phyla further defined by characteristics such as means of movement or structural properties.

Uploaded by

Jeremy Evans
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
121 views

Protists

Protists are a diverse group of mostly unicellular eukaryotic organisms. They are classified as members of the kingdom Protista. Protists can be heterotrophic or autotrophic and live in aquatic or moist environments. They are classified based on their nutrition and motility. There are three main groups - animal-like protists which are heterotrophic protozoa, plantlike protists which are photosynthetic algae, and fungus-like protists which are heterotrophic decomposers. Within these groups there are various phyla further defined by characteristics such as means of movement or structural properties.

Uploaded by

Jeremy Evans
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

Kingdom Protista

Protists: They belong to the Kingdom Protista, which include mostly unicellular
organisms that do not fit into the other kingdoms.
Characteristics of Protists
 mostly unicellular, some are multicellular (algae)
 can be heterotrophic or autotrophic
 most live in water (though some live in moist soil or even the human body)
 All are eukaryotic (have a nucleus)
 A protist is any organism that is not a plant, animal or fungus

Classification of Protists:
 how they obtain nutrition
 how they move

Animal-like Protists – also called protozoa (means “first animal”). e.g. Heterotrophs
Plantlike Protists – also called algae. e.g. autotrophs
Fungus-like Protists – heterotrophs, decomposers, external digestion
Animal-like Protists: Protozoans
Four Phyla of Animal-like Protists – Classified by how they move
 Zooflagellates – flagella
 Sarcodines – extensions of cytoplasm (pseudopodia)
 Ciliates – cilia
 Sporozoans – do not move

Zooflagellates
- Moves using one or two flagella
absorb food across membrane
e.g. Leishmania
Sarcodines
- Moves using pseudopodia ( “false feet” ), which are like
extensions of the cytoplasm –ameboid movement
- ingests food by surrounding and engulfing food
(endocytosis), creating a food vacuole
- reproducing by binary fission (mitosis)
- contractile vacuole – removes excess water
- can cause amebic dysentery in humans – diarrhea and
stomach upset from drinking contaminated water
- Other sarcodines: Foraminferans, Heliozoans
Ciliates
- moves using cilia
- has two nuclei: macronucleus, micronucleus
- food is gathered through the :mouth pore, moved
into a gullet, forms a food vacuole
- anal pore is used for removing waste
- contractile vacuole removes excess water
- exhibits avoidance behavior
- reproduces asexually (binary fission) or sexually
(conjugation)
- outer membrane -pellicle- is rigid and paramecia
are always the same shape, like a shoe

Sporozoans
- do not move on their own
- parasitic
- Malaria is caused by a sporozoan (Plasmodium), which infects the liver and
blood; transmitted by mosquitos

Plantlike Protists: Unicellular Algae

 contain chlorophyll and carry out photosynthesis


 commonly called algae
 four phyla: euglenophytes, chrysophytes, diatoms, dinoflagellates
 accessory pigments help absorb light, give algae a variety of colors
 make up the base of aquatic food chains
 phytoplankton makes up half of the photosynthesis that occurs on earth (oxygen)
 can cause Red Tides - algal blooms - which are toxic

Euglenophytes

- live in water
- have flagella for movement
- use chloroplasts for photosynthesis, but can
turn into heterotrophs if they are kept in the
dark
- eyespot used for sensing light and dark
- pellicle - like a cell wall, helps maintain their
shapes
Green Algae: Phylum Chlorophyta

- Unicellular green algae, Colonial


(volvox), Multicellular (ulva, sea
lettuce)
- Spirogyra
- live in water, multicellular
named after a spiral shaped
chloroplast
autotrophic

Fungus-like Protists

 heterotrophs, decomposers
 called slime molds and water
molds
 water molds responsible for the
Irish Great Potato Famine
 e.g. Dog Vomit Slime Mold -
because it looks like dog puke, but
it's really a protist, in the phylum
Myxomycota.

You might also like