Protist Rap

Structure

A very diverse kingdom

Called the junk drawer kingdom
Members of this kingdom differ greatly in
size, shape, structure, complexity, feeding
habits, locomotion and reproduction
 Structure

Despite this diversity, all protists have

the following characteristics in common:
Most are unicellular; a few are multicellular
Some have cell walls
All are eukaryotic
 Respiration and Nutrition

Protists are almost all aerobic

Didinium
3 Distinct Groups of Protists
(classified based on nutrition)

1. Protozoa (zooplankton)
animal-like
2. Algae (phytoplankton)
plant-like
3. Moulds
fungus-like
 Protozoa
Animal-like
Heterotrophic (scavengers/predators)
Most are motile
Use pseudopods/cilia/flagella
Examples
Amoeba; move using pseudopods
Paramecium; move using cilia
Plasmodium (causes malaria)
 Algae
Plant-like
Autotrophic; have chloroplasts
Have cell walls
Examples
Euglena; move using flagella
Algae (red, brown, green)
Diatoms, dinoflagellates
 Moulds
Fungus-like
Heterotrophic
Reproduce like fungi but look like
animal-like protozoa
Example:
Slime moulds
 The Role of Protists

Protists are an important part of the

food pyramid for many aquatic
communities
Plankton: protists that live in the ocean
Phytoplankton are autotrophic protists
Zooplankton are heterotrophic protists that eat
phytoplankton
Large animals eat zooplankton
 The Role of Protists

Some protists form symbiotic

relationships with other organisms
Trichomonas hominis lives in the human
digestive tract
Some protists are disease-causing
Plasmodium (genus) malaria
Trypanosoma (genus) African Sleeping
Sickness
Giardia beaver fever; contaminate water
Who eats who
Orca

Seals
Fish, squid
zooplankton
phytoplankton
 Reproduction

All capable of asexual reproduction

Some reproduce sexually as well
 Habitat

Cool, shady, aqueous or moist

environments (for locomotion)
Oceans, ponds, lakes, damp soil, leaf piles
 VIDEO Protists Biology
Kingdom Worksheet
 VIDEO Protists