Warm UpWe have discussed and practiced

how scientists classify various things based on characteristics. But what do you do when you

have something that doesn’t fit into any one category?

Kingdom Protista

Characteristics of Protists

• Some are single cell….. Some are

multicellular (all are eukaryotes)!

• Some make their food…. Some eat food!• Some can move…. Some cannot!

• Protists do not have special tissues – no muscles, no bones, no teeth, no nerves, no skin, etc

What do Protists eat?

• Some are autotrophs. (producers)o They use photosynthesis (sun’s energy) to make food.

• Some are heterotrophs (consumers)

o They must eat other organisms or the remains of other organismso May be decomposerso May be parasites – invade other

organisms to feed on it.

How do Protists make more Protists?

• Some reproduce asexuallyo Binary fission.

• Some reproduce sexually• Some use both methods!

o At some point in their life they may use sexual reproduction.

o At another point, they may use asexual.o Some have a complex life cycle involving

more than one host.

Types of Protists that are Producers

oAlgae – plant like;use photosynthesis but do not have roots or leaves

oSeaweed - algae that attaches to surfacesoRed algae, green algae, brown algae

oPhytoplankton – free floating, microscopic algaeoMake most of the world’s oxygen.

More Protists Producers.oDiatoms – single

celled, make up most of the phytoplankton

oDinoflagellates – single celled, have flagella used for movement

oEuglenoids – have two flagella and an eye spot to sense light

Protist Consumers –they need to move to eat

oAmoebas – soft, jellylike protists that moves with a pseudopodia (false feet)

oZooflagellatesoWave flagella to move

oCiliates oMove by hundreds of cilia – tiny whip like structures

Non Moving Protists.oWater molds – live in

soil and wateroSome live as parasitesoSome are decomposers

o Slime moldso similar to fungio look like thin, colorful globs of slime