Protists
KNOWN SPECIES
494,945
20.99% of our world's living things are protists
CHARACTERISTICS
- diverse group of species, ranging from single-celled organisms to multicellular organisms like seaweed and kelp
- grouped together mainly because they CANNOT be classified as plants, animals, fungi, or bacteria
SIZE RANGE
microscopic to about 98 feet (less than 1 micron to about 30 meters)
WHERE THEY LIVE
in soil, fresh water, and oceans, and as parasites inside other organisms
Here are just SOME of the world’s protists:
![Sticker about size](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_size_sticker/5943383-2-eng-US/protists_size_sticker_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_size_sticker/5943383-2-eng-US/protists_size_sticker_full_990.png 600w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_size_sticker/5943383-2-eng-US/protists_size_sticker_full_1468.png 600w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_size_sticker/5943383-2-eng-US/protists_size_sticker_full_1980.png 600w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_size_sticker/5943383-2-eng-US/protists_size_sticker_full_2475.png 600w)
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Acetabularia sp
![thin stems with disc structures at the top](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_acetabularia/5940079-8-eng-US/protists_acetabularia_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_acetabularia/5940079-8-eng-US/protists_acetabularia_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_acetabularia/5940079-8-eng-US/protists_acetabularia_full_1468.png 1468w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_acetabularia/5940079-8-eng-US/protists_acetabularia_full_1980.png 1980w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_acetabularia/5940079-8-eng-US/protists_acetabularia_full_2475.png 2100w)
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Amoeba proteus
![gnarly textured protist](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_amoeba_proteus/5940083-5-eng-US/protists_amoeba_proteus_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_amoeba_proteus/5940083-5-eng-US/protists_amoeba_proteus_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_amoeba_proteus/5940083-5-eng-US/protists_amoeba_proteus_full_1468.png 1468w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_amoeba_proteus/5940083-5-eng-US/protists_amoeba_proteus_full_1980.png 1980w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_amoeba_proteus/5940083-5-eng-US/protists_amoeba_proteus_full_2475.png 2100w)
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Navicula sp
![oblong shaped protist](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_navicula2x/5940075-3-eng-US/protists_navicula2x_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_navicula2x/5940075-3-eng-US/protists_navicula2x_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_navicula2x/5940075-3-eng-US/protists_navicula2x_full_1468.png 1468w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_navicula2x/5940075-3-eng-US/protists_navicula2x_full_1980.png 1980w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_navicula2x/5940075-3-eng-US/protists_navicula2x_full_2475.png 2000w)
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Macrocystis pyrifera
![fan of sea kelp with long fronds](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_kelp2x/5940091-4-eng-US/protists_kelp2x_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_kelp2x/5940091-4-eng-US/protists_kelp2x_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_kelp2x/5940091-4-eng-US/protists_kelp2x_full_1468.png 1468w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_kelp2x/5940091-4-eng-US/protists_kelp2x_full_1980.png 1980w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_kelp2x/5940091-4-eng-US/protists_kelp2x_full_2475.png 1980w)
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Peridinium gatunense
![basketball shaped protist scales and ridges](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_peridinium2x/5940067-3-eng-US/protists_peridinium2x_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_peridinium2x/5940067-3-eng-US/protists_peridinium2x_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_peridinium2x/5940067-3-eng-US/protists_peridinium2x_full_1468.png 1468w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_peridinium2x/5940067-3-eng-US/protists_peridinium2x_full_1980.png 1980w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_peridinium2x/5940067-3-eng-US/protists_peridinium2x_full_2475.png 2000w)
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Paramecium sp
![oblong protist](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_paramecium2x/5940087-3-eng-US/protists_paramecium2x_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_paramecium2x/5940087-3-eng-US/protists_paramecium2x_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_paramecium2x/5940087-3-eng-US/protists_paramecium2x_full_1468.png 1468w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_paramecium2x/5940087-3-eng-US/protists_paramecium2x_full_1980.png 1800w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_paramecium2x/5940087-3-eng-US/protists_paramecium2x_full_2475.png 1800w)
SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Tetrahymena pyriformis
![teardrop shaped protists](/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_tetrahymena2x/5940071-3-eng-US/protists_tetrahymena2x_full_495.png 495w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_tetrahymena2x/5940071-3-eng-US/protists_tetrahymena2x_full_990.png 990w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_tetrahymena2x/5940071-3-eng-US/protists_tetrahymena2x_full_1468.png 1468w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_tetrahymena2x/5940071-3-eng-US/protists_tetrahymena2x_full_1980.png 1980w,/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/amnh/images/explore/ology-images/biodiversity/tree-of-life/protists/protists_tetrahymena2x/5940071-3-eng-US/protists_tetrahymena2x_full_2475.png 2060w)
Guess what?
Protists eat in many ways! Some species surround their food and engulf it. Others can use energy from sunlight to make chemicals they need to grow and survive, in a process called photosynthesis. And some break down dead or decaying material to get energy and nutrients.
Image Credits:
Acetabularia sp, © alderash/CC BY-NC; Amoeba proteus, Navicula sp, Paramecium sp, Courtesy of Louis de Vos, BIODIC; Macrocystis pyrifera, Courtesy of Gary McCarthy; Tetrahymena pyriformis, © Picturepest/CC BY 2.0; Peridinium gatunense, © susan22carty/CC BY-NC.