Columbia Encyclopedia entry: Euglenophyta
Euglenophytayoo′glənŏf'ətə, small phylum (division) of the kingdom Protista, consisting of mostly unicellular aquatic algae. Most live in freshwater; many have flagella and are motile. The outer part of the cell consists of a firm but flexible layer called a pellicle, or periplast, which cannot properly be considered a cell wall. Some euglenoids contain chloroplasts that contain the photosynthetic pigments chlorophyll a and b, as in the phylum Chlorophyta; others are heterotrophic and can ingest or absorb their food. Food is stored as a polysaccharide, paramylon. Reproduction occurs by longitudinal cell division. The most characteristic genus is Euglena, common in ponds and pools, especially when the water has been polluted by runoff from fields or lawns on which fertilizers have been used. There are approximately 1,000 species of euglenoids.
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Wikipedia search results for: Euglenozoa
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The Euglenozoa (redirected from Euglenophyta) are a large group of flagellate protozoa. They include a variety of common free-living species, as well as a few important parasites, some of which infect humans. There are two main subgroups, the euglenids and kinetoplastids. Euglenozoa are unicellular, mostly around 15-40 µm in size, although some euglenids get up to 500 µm long.
Most euglenozoa have two flagella, which are inserted parallel to one another in an apical or subapical pocket. In some these are associated with a cytostome or mouth, used to ingest bacteria or other small organisms. This is supported by one of three sets of microtubules that arise from the flagellar bases;...more »
Columbia Encyclopedia search results: Euglenophyta
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Algae [plural of Lat. alga=seaweed], a large and diverse group of primarily aquatic plantlike organisms. These organisms were previously classified as a primitive subkingdom of the plant kingd...
