Unicellular Organisms Week of February 4 th Unicellular

Unicellular Organisms Week of February 4 th

Unicellular Organism �An organism that consists of only one cell. �Also known as a single-celled organism. �Prokaryotes, most protists, and some fungi are unicellular.

Unicellular vs. Multicellular �Unicellular consist of a single cell. �Multicellular consist of many cells. �Multicellular organisms are often more complex.

Vocab �Heterotrophic: organism must consume food �Autotrophic: organism can make its own food �Flagellum: a long whip-like structure that acts like a little motor.

Vocab cont. �Pseudopods: temporary “feet” used to move around. �Cilia: tiny hair-like projections that move an organism. �Protist: a single-celled or multicellular organism that lives in moist or wet surroundings.

Euglena �Euglena move by a flagellum. �Both heterotrophic and autotrophic. �Have an eyespot at the anterior end that detects light. �Usually lives in quiet ponds or puddles.

Amoeba �Lives in fresh water, salt water, wet soil and in animals (including people). �Surrounds food with pseudopods and forms a food vacuole. �Move by changing shape. �Eats algae, bacteria, plant cells. �Some amoebas are parasites.

Paramecium �An animal-like protists. �Live in quiet or stagnant ponds. �Feed on algal scum or other microorganisms. �Move using cilia. �Contains two types of nuclei and two types of cytoplasm.

Volvox �Live in colonies; about 500 cells will group together. �The colonies appear as green spheres in water. �Move using a flagella. �Likes the dark waters of ponds.