Protozoa -- 'unicellular' eukaryotes, may be referred to as protists, protozoans, unicellulates etc; often now included in a separate kingdom together with fungal protists and algae -- as the Protista or Protoctista -- a grouping of problematical and multiple lineage; many groups have representatives traditionally studied by both algologists and zoologists, leading to much confusion in terminology and classification; the scheme followed here takes a zoological viewpoint --[links images] Sarcomastigophora Mastigophora mastigophorans, flagellates. Phytomastigophorea phytoflagellates, which have chloroplasts and are photosynthetic. Chloromonadida chloromonads, chlorophytes (Heterosigma). Chrysomonadida chrysomonads, chrysophytes, yellow-green algae (Mallomonas, Ochromonas). Cryptomonadida cryptomonads, cryptophytes, found all over the world -- both free living in moist places and parasitic in animals (Cryptomonas, Rhodomonas) Dinoflagellida dinocysts, dinoflagellates, dinomastigotes, dinophytes, mostly marine planktonic but some freshwater representatives, may form 'red tides' (Gonyaulax), be luminescent (Noctiluca), form symbiotic relationships with coelenterates (Gymnodinium), and others (Peridinium) Euglenida euglenoid flagellates, euglenophyta, mostly inhabit freshwater enriched with organic matter (Euglena), some marine or brackish, a few are parasitic in animals. Prymnesiida prymnesiophytes, haptophytes, golden motile algae viewed by marine biologists as calcareous nannoplankton plankton and by palaeontologists as coccolithophorids (Coccolithus, Prymnesium) Silicoflagellida silicoflagellates (Dictyocha) Volvocida (Chlamydomonas, Chloromonas, Dunaliella, Volvox) Zoomastigophorea zooflagellates Choanoflagellida choanoflagellates, collar-flagellates, may be solitary (Salpingoeca) or colonial (Proterospongia), colonial choanoflagellates resemble sponges and it is thought that they might represent what an ancestor of all metazoans might have been like --[ucmp] Diplomonadida some freeliving in freshwater but most commensal or parasitic in intestines of animals (Giardia, Hexamita) Hypermastigida Kinetoplastida include the freeliving bodonids and parasitic trypanosomes (Leishmania, Trypanosoma) Oxymonadida Proteromonadida (Proteromonas) Trichomonadida (Trichomonas, Tritrichomonas) Opalinata (Opalina) Sarcodina made up of superclasses Rhizopoda (amastigote amoebae and thecamoebae) and the Actinopoda which includes the radiolarian groups Lobosea Gymnamoebia (Gymnamoeba) Amoebida (Acanthamoeba, Amoeba, Entamoeba) Pelobiontida karyoblasteans,freeliving amoeboid protists completely lacking mitochondria (Pelomyxa) Schizopyrenida sometimes called amoeboflagellates, common in soils, some are pathogenic in man(Naegleria) Testacealobosia Arcellinida (Arcella, Difflugia) Himatismenida Tichosida Acarpomyxea (Leptomyxa) Acrasea cellular slime moulds (Acrasis) Eumycetozoea includes cellular slime moulds, the prosteliids (Ceratiomyxa) and dictyosteliids (Dictyostelium, Polysphondylium), together with acellular, plasmodial or true slime moulds -- myxogastrids, myxomycota, myxomycetes (Physarum) Plasmodiophorea mostly obligate parasites of plants (Plasmodiophora, Spongospora) Filosea includes aconchulinids and gromiids (Euglypha) Granuloreticulosia includes Foraminifera (Ammonia, Anomalina, Globigerina, Globorotalia, Trochammina) Xenophyophorea (Psammina) Acantharea radiolarian group Polycystinea radiolarian group Phaeodarea radiolarian group Heliozoea primarily freshwater (Acanthocystis, Dimorpha, Raphidocystis) Labyrinthomorpha labyrinthulids, slime nets, form transparent colonies of individual cells (Labyrinthula) Apicomplexa named for 'apical complex' a distinctive arrangement of organelles at one end of the cell, all are spore forming parasites of animals and include the haematozoan parasites of vertebrate blood --[ucmp ToL] Perkinsea (Perkinsus) Sporozoea Gregarinia gregarines (Gregarina, Nematopsis) Coccidia coccidians, malarial parasites (Cryptosporidium, Eimeria, Hepatozoon, Isospora, Plasmodium, Toxoplasma) Piroplasmia piroplasmids (Babesia, Theileria) Microspora mostly intracellular parasites of vertebrates (Glugea, Microsporidium, Nosema) Ascetospora (=Haplospora) includes the spore forming parasites Haplosporidia (Haplosporidium, Urosporidium) and Paramyxea Myxozoa (=Cnidospora) traditionally considered protistan parasites but recent molecular evidence supports an origin with parasitic cnidarians [ToL] Myxosporea myxosporidians, parasites of vertebrates and often disease causing in fish (Ceratomyxa, Henneguya, Kudea, Myxidium, Myxobolus) Actinosporea actinomyxids, parasites of invertebrates Ciliophora ciliates, infusorians, characterized by having cilia [ucmp] Kinetofragminophorea Gymnostomatia includes Katyorelictida (Loxodes) and Prostomatida (Didinium) Vestibulifera includes Colpodida (Colpoda), Entodiniomorpha (Entodinium, Polyplastron) and Trichostomatida (Balantidium, Dasytricha) Hypostomatia includes Apostomatida, Cyrtophorida and Nassulida Suctoria (Trichophrya) Oligohymenophorea Hymenostomatida includes Astomatida, Hymenostomatida (Colpidium, Paramecium, Tetrahymena) and Scuticociliatida (Uronema) Hysterocinetia Peritrichia peritrichs (Ophrydium, Trichodina, Vorticella) Polyhymenophorea Spirotrichia includes Heterotrichida (Bursaria, Metopus, Stentor), Hypotrichida (Euplotes, Oxytricha), Oligotrichida (Strombidium, tintinnids) Hemimastigophora