Kingdom: Protista

Protists are unicellular

organisms that have a
nucleus.
 Similar to Bacteria
 Unicellular
 One of the first groups of living things on
Earth. (1.5-2.1 billion years ago.)
 Microscopic
 Can cause disease.
 Can be parasites
Difference from Bacteria
 Has a nucleus.
 Live in watery environment.
 Generally live as individual cells.
 Protists vary greatly in appearance and
function.
3 Categories
 I. Animal-like Protists.
 II. Plant-like Protists.
 III. Fungus-like Protists.
I. Animal-like Protists
 Protozoan means “First Animal”.
 Cells contain a nucleus.
 Cells lack a cell wall.
 They are heterotrophs.
 Most can move on their own.
 They are so named because many
species behave like tiny animals—
specifically, they hunt and gather other
microbes as food.
4 Groups of Animal-like Protists
 All protozoa digest their food in stomach-
like compartments called vacuoles <vac-
you-ohls>. As they chow down, they
make and give off nitrogen, which is an
element that plants and other higher
creatures can use.
 Protozoa range in size from 1/5,000 to 1/50
of an inch (5 to 500 µm) in diameter.
 1. Sarcodines (Amoeboids)
 2. Ciliates
 3. Flagellates
 4. Sporozoans
1. Sarcodines (Amoeboids)
 The Amoeboids and are found in the phylum
Rhizopoda
 Extensions of the cell membrane and
cytoplasm.
 Pseudopods are used for movement and to
capture food.
 Are split into to group those with shells and
those without, testate amoebae, which have
a shell-like covering, and the naked
amoebae, which don't have this covering.
 These shells form limestone, marble and chalk.
One type:
 Most familiar
Sarcodine.
 Pseudopods:
 Blob shaped.
 Contractile
Vacuoles: controls
amount of water
inside
 Food Vacuole:
where food is
digested.
Split Personality
 Amebas reproduce
by dividing into two
new cells (binary
fission).
 Amebas can
respond to their
environment.
 They are sensitive to
light and some
chemicals.
2. Ciliates
 Ciliatesfrom the
phylum Ciliophora.
These are generally
the largest protozoa.

 Have cilia on the

outside of their cells.
 Tiny hair-like
projections used for
movement, to gather
food and as feelers.
 Pellicle: tough outer
wall.
 Slipper shaped
 Oral groove: like the
mouth Type: Paramecium
 Gullet: holds food.
 Food Vacuole:
digests food.
 Anal Pore: removes
wastes
 2 Contractile
Vacuoles
 2 Nuclei
 Reproduces by
either binary fission
or conjugation.
3. Flagellates (Zooflagellates)
 Have a Flagellum: a
long whip-like
structure used for
movement.
 Many live in animals
 Symbiosis a close
relationship, at least
one benefits.
 Mutualism: when
both partners
benefit.
Flagellates con’t
 Flagellates are of the
phylum Zoomastigina.
 the smallest of the
protoza.
 Flagellates use their
flagella to move.

 Itis a flagellate in the

intestines of termites
which enable them to
eat wood. Both
organisms benefit
4. Sporozoans
 The last of the Protozoans come from the
phylum, Sporozoa
 All Sporozans are parasites.
 They feed on cells and body fluids.
 Form from Spores (tiny reproductive cells).
 Pass from one host to another.
 Pass from ticks, mosquitoes or other
animals to humans.
II. Plant-like Protists
(Algae)

 Unicellular and Multicellular

 Colonies (groups of unicellular protists)
 Can move on their own
 Autotrophs: make their own food from simple
materials using light energy (photosynthesis).
 70% of the Earth’s oxygen is produced by Plant-
like Protists!
 Pigments: chemicals that produce color
 There are three unicellular phyla of algae:

 Phylum Euglenophyta (Eugelnoids)

 Phylum Bacillariophyta (Diatoms)
 Phylum Dinoflagellata (Dinoflagellates)

 Thereare three multicellular phyla of algae which

are classified by color:
 Red Algae
 Green Algae
 Brown Algae
1. Euglenoids
 Green
 Unicellular
 Live in fresh water
 Autotrophs, but can be
heterotrophs under
certain conditions by
ingesting food from the
surrounding water.
 Flagella
 Eyespot: sensitive to
light.
 Chloroplasts
 Are plant like and
animal like.
2. Diatoms
 Unicellular
 10,000 living species.
 Aquatic
 Glass like cell wall
made of silica
 Photoautotrophs
 Make up a large
portion oh
phytoplankton, a
source of Earth’s
oxygen.
3. Dinoflagellates
 Unicellular
 Cellwalls are like
plates of armor.
 Two flagella
 Spins when it moves.
 Colorful (pigments)
 Can glow in the
dark.
 Causes Red Tide
Red Algae
 Multicellular seaweeds
 Rhodophyta are red
seaweeds.

 They are found in warm

or cold marine
environments along
coast lines in deeper
water.

 They absorb green,

violet, and blue light
waves. These light
waves are able to
penetrate below 100
meters.
Green Algae
 The last of the
multicellular algae
are the green algae
from the Phylum
Chlorophyta.
 Most are unicellular
 Some form colonies
 Few are multicellular
 Can live in fresh and
salt water and on
land in damp places.
 Very closely related
to green plants.
Brown Algae
 Commonly called seaweed
 Can contain brown, green,
yellow, orange and black
pigments.
 Attach to rocks
 Have air bladders
 They are found in cool
saltwater along rocky coasts.
 Phylum Phaeophyta is made
up of the brown algae.
 Giant Kelp are the largest and
most complex brown algae.
They have hold fasts and air
bladders. Giant Kelp can be
100 meters long!
III. Fungus-like Protists
 Heterotrophs
 Have cell walls.
 Many have flagella and are able to move at
some point in their lives.
 Three types: Slime Molds, Water & Downy Molds
 Reproduce with Spores (tiny cell that is able to
grow into a new organism)
 Fungus-like protists, Myxomycota and Oomycota
are decomposers.
 Phylum Myxomycota are made up of plasmodial
slime molds.
 Phylum Oomycota is made up of water molds
and downy molds.
Water & Downy Molds
 Live in water or moist
places.
 Tiny threads that look like
fuzz.
 Attack food crops
 Caused the Irish Potato
Famine.
 Water molds from the
Phylum Oomycota are
classified as protists
because they have
flagellated reproductive
cells.
 Downy mildews parasitize
plants and are
decomposers in freshwater
ecosystems.
 Slime Molds
 Reproduce by
Fruiting Bodies:
 The Fruiting Bodies
contain Spores.
 At first they look like
ameba, then later
they look like mold.
 Live on moist shady
places.
 Feed on bacteria
and other
microorganisms.
 Slime molds have traits like both fungi and
animals. During good times, they live as
independent, amoeba-like cells, dining on
fungi and bacteria. But if conditions become
uncomfortable—not enough food available,
the temperature isn't right, etc.—individual
cells begin gathering together to form a
single structure. The new communal structure
produces a slimy covering and is called a
slug because it so closely resembles the
animal you sometimes see gliding across
sidewalks. The slug oozes toward light. When
the communal cells sense that they've come
across more food or better conditions, the
slug stops