KINGDOM PROTISTA, ANIMALIA AND BODY PLANS
BIO102 INTRODUCTORY ZOOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Kingdom Protista
In assessing diversity of the animal world, will look at the
various types of animals (-like) organisms
Start at the simplest level, i.e, the Kingdom Protista/Protoctista
While members of this kingdom are made up of only one cell,
this single cell is functionally equivalent to a multicellular
organism
Also have protists with more than one nucleus (multinucleate),
or those living together as a colony
Protists not a uniform group which can be easily classified as
either plant or animal
Most organisms in this kingdom are neither & may possess
features of either group
Since have done the mainly plant-like, i.e. algae & slime moulds
in B111
Will be concentrating on the animal-like, referred to as the
Protozoans (1st animals)
Protozoans are unicellular, freely mobile & have no spore
production
Feeding is mainly heterotrophic where food particles are
ingested or absorbed (saprophytic and holozoic members)
Classification of these is largely based on their Mode of
Locomotion
3 phyla
1. Sarcomastigophora - Flagellates & Amoebas
2. Apicomplexa – non-motile adult stages
3. Ciliophora – ciliated
i. Phylum Sarcomastigophora
a.Sub-Phylum Sarcodina – the amoebas
Usually aquatic & free-living
Amoebas usually have no definite form or body shape due to
the absence of a rigid shell
Locomotion in these organisms is achieved through extension of
the cytoplasm through formation of pseudopodia
Pseudopodia can be formed in any position on the periphery
Feeding: holozoic nutrition & feed through phagocytosis. Food
is acquired using pseudopodia where food particle, e.g.
bacteria, algae, nematodes, etc. is engulfed along with some
water to form a food vacuole, inside which digestion takes place
Reproduction: entirely asexual, through binary fission & mitosis.
When cell has grown to maximum size during favourable
conditions, nucleus undergoes mitosis then divides into 2
Cytoplasm subsequently divides equally &
have separation of nuclei resulting in two
daughter cells
b. Sub-Phylum Mastigophora – the Flagellates
This group includes all protists which possess one or more
flagella as organelles of locomotion
Feeding – their feeding varies, i.e. holozoic or saprophytic
Reproduction- is asexual, where have mitosis of internal
organelles followed by binary fission
ii. Phylum Ciliophora
Members of this group are characterised by the possession of
cilia, which are short, flexible protrusions of the cytoplasm
Cilia used a both locomotory & feeding organelles
They possess two types of nuclei, i.e.
micronucleus which controls sexual reproduction
macronucleus which controls all cell activities, e.g.
metabolism, except reproduction
Feeding: Typically holozoic where have bulk intake of prey rather
than simple absorption
Reproduction
Have asexual through binary fission > macronucleus
simply divides by mitosis
Also have a form of sexual reproduction called conjugation
iii. Phylum Apicomplexa (Sporozoans)
This probably the most important group of protozoans
While other phyla have locomotory organelles, these absent in
the mature stages
Also have spore formation during certain stages of life-cycle
Economic and Ecological importance
i. Source of food: e.g. kelps are edible and may be used to
overcome shortage of food in world
ii.Source of commercial products: many marine protists are also
source of many useful substances like algin, agar, carrageen
and antiseptics
iii.Primary Producer of Aquatic Ecosystem: Most are primary
producers of the aquatic ecosystem, producing between 70
and 80 percent of the world's oxygen
Economic and Ecological importance
iv. Source of medicines: Sodium laminaria sulphate is used as a
blood coagulant. Fucoidan and heparin are the algae products,
which are also used as blood coagulants. Lyngbya produces an
anticancer compound
v. Source of mineral: Kelps are rich in sodium, potassium, iodine
etc. They are good source of these minerals.
vi. Biological research: Protists are also used in biological
researches e.g. Chlorella is unicellular non-motile green alga
vii. Pathogens: they cause many diseases in man or in vegetables
and fruits. Several deadly diseases are caused by protist
pathogens, such as malaria (Plasmodium), toxoplasmosis
(Toxoplasma), and amoebic dysentery (Entamoeba histolytica)
viii. They can teach us about the origins of complex multicellular
organisms like the plants and animals. Many protists, such as the
cellular slime moulds and the green algae, display coloniality or
simpler forms of multicellularity that illustrate how complex
multicellularity may have evolved
x. Some species are important symbiotic partners with other
organisms
KINGDOM ANIMALIA (METAZOA)
> multi-cellular, heterotrophic eukaryotes, do not have cell walls
• Multicellularity – levels of biological
organisation
• Movement – sessile organisms?
• Nutrition – heterotrophic
• Reproduction – 2n > n
• Nerve and muscle tissue >> highest variation
Body plan and evolution
Animals are believed to have evolved from protozoan
ancestors but had evolutionary lines from 2 lines (sub-
kingdoms) giving rise to the parazoa and metazoan
Parazoa (Sponges) &
Metazoa (all other animals)
In order to be able to make comparisons of the various animals
a layout of their body plan is used
In making such assessment, the animals’ evolutionary ancestry
& environmental adaptations are utilized
Important properties for assessment of body plan
i. Level of organization
ii. Body symmetry: arrangement around
central axis
- radial > have infinite #
- bilateral > 1
- spherical
- asymmetrical > 0
iii. Segmentation > also called metamerism
Body divided by cross walls such that it is constructed by
repetition of subunits called segments
iv. Number of germ layers
Not morphological
v. Body cavity
Animals have traditionally been divided into
With backbones (Vertebrates, e.gs. ?)
Without backbone (Invertebrates, e.gs. ?)
≈<5% vs 94-99%
Invertebrate Support and Movement
Support (against gravity) vs movement (mobility)
i. Lack visible means of support
Hydrostatic skeleton: use pressure with fluid-filled cavity
Functions: skeletal functions
Movement, digging and burrowing
ii. External support – e.g
Various types & functions, e.g. exoskeleton, shells > protect,
flotation
Disadvantages? Non-living (minimize growth) & heavy > so??
iii. Internal support - Endoskeleton
- diploblastic > ectoderm & endoderm (mesoglea)
- triploblastic > + mesoderm
