PROTOZOAN

Protozoa (also protozoan, plural protozoans) is an informal term for single-celled eukaryotes, either free-
living or parasitic, which feed on organic matter such as other microorganisms or organic tissues and
debris. Historically, the protozoa were regarded as "one-celled animals", because they often possess
animal-like behaviors, such as motility and predation, and lack a cell wall, as found in plants and many
algae. Although the traditional practice of grouping protozoa with animals is no longer considered valid, the
term continues to be used in a loose way to identify single-celled organisms that can move independently
and feed by heterotrophy.
 In some systems of biological classification, Protozoa is a high-level taxonomic group. When first
introduced in 1818, Protozoa was erected as a taxonomic class, but in later classification schemes it was
elevated to a variety of higher ranks, including phylum, subkingdom and kingdom. In a series of
classifications proposed by Thomas Cavalier-Smith and his collaborators since 1981, Protozoa has been
ranked as a kingdom. The seven-kingdom scheme presented by Ruggiero et al. in 2015, places eight phyla
under Kingdom Protozoa: Euglenozoa, Amoebozoa, Metamonada, Choanozoa sensu Cavalier-Smith,
Loukozoa, Percolozoa, Microsporidia and Sulcozoa. Notably, this kingdom excludes several major groups
of organisms traditionally placed among the protozoa, including the ciliates, dinoflagellates, foraminifera,
and the parasitic apicomplexans, all of which are classified under Kingdom Chromista. Kingdom Protozoa,
as defined in this scheme, does not form a natural group or clade, but a paraphyletic group or evolutionary
grade, within which the members of Fungi, Animalia and Chromista are thought to have evolved.