Plantlike Protists: Unicellular Algae

• contain chlorophyll and carry out photosynthesis
• commonly called algae
• four phyla: euglenophytes, chrysophytes, diatoms, dinoflagellates
• accessory pigments help absorb light, give algae a variety of colors

Euglenophytes

Euglena (See Euglena Coloring Sheet )

live in water
have flagella for movement
use chloroplasts for photosynthesis, but can turn into heterotrophs if they are kept in the dark
eyespot used for sensing light and dark
pellicle - like a cell wall, helps maintain their shapes

Chrysophytes

Diatoms

Dinoflagellates

Ecology of Unicellular Algae

• make up the base of aquatic food chains
• phytoplankton makes up half of the photosynthesis that occurs on earth (oxygen)
• can cause Red Tides - algal blooms - which are toxic

Plantlike Protists: Red, Brown, Green Algae

Green Algae: Phylum Chlorophyta

Unicellular green algae, Colonial (volvox), Multicellular (ulva, sea lettuce)

Spirogyra

live in water, multicellular
named after a spiral shaped chloroplast
autotrophic

Funguslike Protists

• heterotrophs, decomposers
• called slime molds and water molds
• water molds responsible for the Irish Great Potato Famine

Dog Vomit Slime Mold - because it looks like dog puke, but it's really a protist, in the phylum Myxomycota