Biology- Protista Kingdom
Ally Bo, Tony Wang, Ben Szurek
Physical Requirements to be a Protista
-Must be Eukaryotic
-This means to have a nucleus containing DNA, and cells are larger than archaea and bacteria
Physical Features of Protista
-Usually single celled, sometimes multi-cellular or colonial
-Can look like animals, plants, or fungi, but typically are small and simple
-Cell walls differ based on the species
Types of Protista
Plant like- Photosynthetic, capable of synthesizing its own food (autotrophs), no roots, stems or
leaves. Can reproduce both sexually and asexually.
Animal like- Unicellular, cannot synthesize own food (heterotrophs), dependent on other
organisms for food. Consume other organisms for food.
Fungus like- Usually decomposers, can move in part of their life, cannot synthesize own food
(heterotrophs).
Examples of Phyla
Rhizopoda- Rhizopods, Have and use foot like appendages to move and feed, animal like (Ex.
Amoeba)
Rhodophyta- Red Algae, Multi-cellular, photosynthetic, live
Amoeba
In salt water, contains red pigment, plant like (Ex. Coralline
Algae)
Coralline Algae
Apicomplexa- Sporozoans, Parasites than move by
Body flexion or gliding. Cause diseases in birds and
humans, animal like (Ex. Plasmodium)
Ciliophora- Ciliates, possess many short hair type things called
Plasmodium Protozoa
Cilia, use them for feeding and movement, animal like (Ex.
Paramecium)
Paramecium
Protista’s Advantages over other Kingdoms
-Microscopic, hard for predators to find
-Don’t need much food, only need sunlight for photosynthesis (except animal like Protista)
-Some create diseases in creatures from other Kingdoms
-Some Protista are extremely tough
-Protists are very diverse, and the whole Kingdom Protista contains various features of all the
other Kingdoms
What if the Earth didn’t have the Protista Kingdom
-Without zooflagellates (type of Protista) termites would not be able to survive. Zooflagellates
play a vital role in helping the termites digest the wood they eat
- Algae produces 80% of the world’s oxygen. Algae is made by protists
-Green algae was an ancestor to many modern plants
-Red algae provides many products like ice cream, and dried red algae is used to roll seaweed