Kingdom ProtistaAlly Bo, Tony Wang, and Ben Szurek

To be a protist, an organism must be Eukaryotic

This means to have a nucleus that contains the organisms DNA

Cells are larger than archaea and bacteria

What is a Protista?

Can be single-celled, multicellular, or colonial

Size ranges from microscopic to very large Can look like animals, plants or fungi, but

are usually simpler and smaller Cell Walls differ based on the species The kingdom is divided into three broad

categories

Physical Features of Protista

Group DescriptionAnimal-Like -Heterotrophs (cannot synthesize own food)

-Organisms that consume other organisms-All single-celled

Plant-like -Make own food by photosynthesis just like plants do (autotrophs, can synthesize own food)-Can be single-celled, multicellular, or colonial-May have chloroplasts, but no roots, stems or leaves

Fungus-like -Dead organisms decompose-Can move during part of their life-Heterotrophs (cannot synthesize own food)

Types of Protista?

Rhizopoda- Rhizopods, Have and use foot like appendages to move and feed, animal like (Ex. Amoeba)

Rhodophyta- Red Algae, Multi-cellular, photosynthetic, live in salt water, contains red pigment, plant like (Ex. Coralline Algae)

Examples of Phyla

Apicomplexa- Sporozoans, Parasites than move by Body flexion or gliding. Cause diseases in birds and humans,

animal like (Ex. Plasmodium)

Examples of Phyla

Examples of Phyla Ciliophora- Ciliates, possess many short hair type things called Paramecium Cilia, use them for feeding and movement, animal like (Ex.

Paramecium)

-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

Protista’s Advantages over other Kingdoms

-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

What if the Earth didn’t have the Protista Kingdom