Question

Write the diagnostic characters of (i) Slime moulds (ii) Zooflagellates (iii) Sarcodine.

Answer 1

Diagnostic characters of slime moulds:

• They do not have chlorophyll.
• They are surrounded by plasma membrane only. However, the spores have the cellulose cell walls.
• They live usually amongst decaying vegetation.
• They exhibit wide range of colouration.
• They have phagotrophic or saprotrophic nutrition.

Diagnostic characters of zooflagellates:

• They possess flagella for locomotion.
• They may be free living, aquatics, parasites, commensals or symbionts.
• They are generally uninucleate, occasionally multinucleate.
• The body is covered by a firm pellicle.
• Nutrition is holozoic, saprobic and parasitic.

Diagnostic characters of Sarcodine:

• They develop pseudopodia which are temporary protoplasmic outgrowths.
• Pseudopodia are used for locomotion and engulfing food particles.
• They are mostly free living, found in fresh water, sea water and on damp soil. Only a few are parasitic.
• The body may be covered with plasmalemma or a shell.
• They are generally uninucleate. Binucleate and multinucleate types also occur but the nuclei are monomorphic.
• Nutrition is commonly holozoic.