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Many predatory protists engulf prey with finger-ashaped extensions called__________. Protists that absorb nutrients from their surroundings may act as _________ of dead organic matter or as harmful ___________ of larger living organisms. LO1
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The given blank space in the statement, “Many predatory protists engulf prey with finger-like extensions called __________. Protists that absorb nutrients from their surroundings may act as __________ of dead organic matter or as harmful __________ of larger living organisms.”
Introduction:
Protist refers to any eukaryote that is not an animal, a fungus, or a plant. Protists are categorized in a kingdom Protista that contains unicellular or unicellular-colonial organisms forming no tissues. Protists manifest diverse modes of locomotion, reproduction, and nutrition.
Explanation of Solution
Protists represent three modes of nutrition: ingestion of food, absorption of nutrients from their surroundings, or trapping solar energy through the process of photosynthesis directly. Protists are usually called predators that ingest food. For doing so, protists use finger-like extensions termed as pseudopods for engulfing prey. Tiny currents created by other predators sweep food particles inside the cell through mouth-like openings. The food is then digested by a food vacuole in both ways of ingesting food.
Nutrients are absorbed by protists from their surroundings directly. These protists may live freely or use bodies of other organisms to live in. protists that live freely are usually found in soil and other environments containing dead organic matter. They act as decomposers. Protists that live inside other or host organisms are parasites and cause harm to the host species.
Many predatory protists engulf prey with finger-like extensions called pseudopods. Protists that absorb nutrients from their surroundings may act as decomposers of dead organic matter or as harmful parasites of larger living organisms.
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Chapter 20 Solutions
Biology: Life on Earth
- You are given five test tubes, each containing an unknown protist, and your task is to read the description below and match these five protists that you know to the correct test tube. -Paramecium -Pfiesteria (dinoflagellate) -Navicula (diatom) -Plasmodium -Amoeba In test tube 1, you sketch the organism and come up with a picture that looks like the one below. You note the organism appears to be “eating” the smaller microorganism. Chemical analysis of test tube 2 indicates the presence of a chemical that is toxic to fish and humans. In test tube 3, you detect the presence of substantial amounts of silica. Microscopic analysis of organisms in tube 4 reveals the presence of an apicoplast in the organism Microscopic analysis of the contents in tube 5 reveals the presence of one large macronucleus and several small micronuclei in each organism Match the description with the correct protistarrow_forwardI don't understand this practice bio question: Despite the fact that modern taxonomists have abandoned the Kingdom Protista, the term "protist" persists in the biological literature. Explain the current meaning of the term protist and give several specific examples.arrow_forwardWhich group of protists are the most abundant marine autotrophs? dinoflagellates chlorarachniophytes diatoms chlorophytesarrow_forward
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- Dinoflagellates are unicellular, marine protists. Dinoflagellates are bioluminescent, but only at night. During the day, they carry out photosynthesis similar to other autotrophs. At night, however, they bioluminesce every time they are disturbed. They are often seen in the wakes of ships at night. While the reason for this bioluminescence is not fully understood, many scientists concur that it is a form of self-defense. If small fish begin to feed upon the protists, the protists will begin to bioluminesce. These flashes of light in the dark water can alert larger fish and draw them towards the small fish, upon which they prey. By making the small fish vulnerable, the dinoflagellates are able to protect themselves. Based on the information above, a researcher decides to design an experiment in which she is testing how long it takes for dinoflagellates to recover after different amounts of disturbance. She maintains 10 containers of dinoflagellates with similar temperature, salinity and…arrow_forwardDinoflagellates are unicellular, marine protists. Dinoflagellates are bioluminescent, but only at night. During the day, they carry out photosynthesis similar to other autotrophs. At night, however, they bioluminesce every time they are disturbed. They are often seen in the wakes of ships at night. While the reason for this bioluminescence is not fully understood, many scientists concur that it is a form of self-defense. If small fish begin to feed upon the protists, the protists will begin to bioluminesce. These flashes of light in the dark water can alert larger fish and draw them towards the small fish, upon which they prey. By making the small fish vulnerable, the dinoflagellates are able to protect themselves. Based on the information above, a researcher decides to design an experiment in which she is testing how long it takes for dinoflagellates to recover after different amounts of disturbance. She maintains 10 containers of dinoflagellates with similar temperature, salinity and…arrow_forwardWhich of the following is NOT true of protists? Select one: a. Some are unicellular. b. They may be photosynthetic. c. They are usually aerobic, though some are not. d. They may have cell walls. e. They may be prokaryotic.arrow_forward
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