Flagellates

Kingdom: Protista

Group: Mastigophora

Categories: Phytomastigophora (resembles plants) and Zoomastigophora (resembles animals)

Flagellates are a protozoa, both plant and animal, which spends most of its existence moving or feeding with flagella. It is the most widespread, single-celled protist with one or more flagella which is used for the movement of the flagellate through the liquid they are in. Some Flagellates live as colonial entities, while others are a single cell. Most of them are free-living, while some are parasitic or pathogenic for animals and humans, and they are able to feed autotropically as well as heterotrophically. Their reproduction is usually either asexual, by logitudinal splitting, or sexual.

A group of Flagellates like bacteria ingest partially digested foods rather than whole foods, and are used to determine BOD levels in water or wet environments. Therefore, Flagellates require wet, cool environments such as lagoons and environments with large amounts of soluble food.

Huge increases in temperatures is a climate change that could effect Flagellates because the water or liquid they are living in could heat up. Also, major decreases in temperature could effect them as well because their environment could freeze over, not allowing them to move around and feed. Flagellates are both plant and animal, so if anything were to happen to the environment that would effect plants and animals, such as high winds or again temperatures, then the Flagellates are sure to possibly be effected as well in the same way. The only effect this organism would have on the whole diversity if it were effected itself, would be that the Rain Forest could not be used to determine their BOD levels. If biologists need to figure out the BOD levels in a Tropical Rain Forest, then this organism should definitely be preserved.

Abby Leake