Protists

The most diverse kingdom

Basic Characteristics

• all live in moist environments.

• are unicellular or multi-cellular

Why are Protists important?

They:

• provide food and energy for pond food chains

• support the fish and animal life in and around the pond.

3 types of Protists

• 1) Animal-like

• 2) Plant- like

• 3) Fungus-like

1) Protozoa {animal-like Protists}(means first animal)

• All protozoa digest their food in stomach-like compartments called vacuoles.

• they make and give off nitrogen

Life in a drop of pond water

4 types of Protozoans

a) Move by cilia

b) Move by “false-feet” (psuedopod)

c) Move by Flagella

d) Don’t move (parasites)

a) Ciliates

• have hair-like projections called cilia

• They use the hairs to help food particles get sucked in to them

• beat their cilia in a rhythmic pattern to move along

paramaceium

b) Amoeba (Sarcodines)

• they ooze about by extending parts of their cell as pseudopods or "false feet."

• they have fluid cell membranes or coverings that they can stretch out, bend and curve.

c) Flagellates

• have one or several long, whip-like projections called flagella poking out of their cells.

• they swim by waving their flagella, using them much like a fish uses its tail to push itself through water.

Chilomonas

Euglena

d) Protists that don’t move

• Parasitic protozoans• Malaria –Anopholes

mosquito

'''Toxoplasma gondii'''

Some Protozoans we expect to find:

Spirostomum

Euplotes

Chilomonas

Euglena

Dileptus

How are protists harmful?

Malaria • is caused by a sporozoan (a parasitic protist)

• enters through the Anopheles mosquito

African Sleeping sickness

• *Flagellates called trypanosomes

• Cause fever and sleepiness• http://www.utm.edu/departments/cece/old_site/seventh/7D2.shtml