Plantlike Protists Notes

Nickname: Plantlike protists’s nickname is Algae. They are also extremely DIVERSE! Like Plants, Algae are autotrophs!

Nickname: (cont.) Algae play a significant role in many environments. They are food for other organisms. They also make much of the oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere!

Some are unicellular, others are multicellular Some unicellular algae live in colonies – working as a team! They can come in many colors including: Green, yellow, red, brown, orange and a few are even black!

Diatoms Unicellular with beautiful glasslike cell walls. Some float at the surface, others attach themselves to the rocks in shallow ponds. Diatoms are food for heterotrophs.

Diatoms (cont.) Many diatoms can move by oozing chemicals out of slits in their cell walls. Then they glide in the slime.

Dinoflagellates Are unicellular algae surrounded by stiff plates of armor. They come in many colors. All Dinoflagellates have 2 flagella that beat and twirl so they spin like toy tops. Many glow in the dark!

Euglenoids Green and unicellular. They can be animal like SOMETIMES by being heterotrophs under certain conditions. They have eyespots which help them “see.”

Red Algae Almost all are multicellular seaweeds. They are red, because red color reaches the farthest in the ocean meaning they can live in deeper water and still do photosynthesis. It is also very TASTY! Especially in sushi!

Green Algae Most are unicellular. Some live in colonies. They are so much like plants that some scientists think they should be in the plant kingdom.

Brown Algae Nickname: Seaweed. They have “bladders” that hold oxygen and act like “arm floaties” to help it float in the water. Giant Kelp (a seaweed) can grow as big as 100 meters (300+ feet long!!!)