Biological Study Notes: Euglenophyta and Kingdom Fungi

Euglena viridis (Fig. $2.9$ ) is a protist that represents a typical example of an organism sharing the characteristics of both plants and animals.
It is a microscopic, unicellular, and aquatic organism.

$(i)$ Possession of a flagellum used for movement.
$(ii)$ Possession of a gullet for the passage of food or for feeding.
$(iii)$ Possession of a pellicle which makes its body flexible or gives the body a definite shape.
$(iv)$ Presence of myonemes which do aid movement.
$(v)$ Presence of an eye spot which enables it to detect light intensity.
$(vi)$ Possession of a contractile vacuole used for osmoregulation and excretion.
$(vii)$ It has the ability to carry out a holozoic mode of nutrition in the absence of sunlight.

$(i)$ Possession of chloroplasts which enable it to carry out photosynthesis.
$(ii)$ Possession of pyrenoids where starch is stored.
$(iii)$ Presence of paramylum granules, which are the forms in which starch is stored.
$(iv)$ It has a holophytic (autotrophic) mode of nutrition.

The internal and external anatomy of Euglena is composed of the following features (as seen in Fig. $2.9$ ):

Section: $2.6$
Fungi were for a long time classified with the plants.
They differ significantly from plants in the composition of their cell walls; most fungal cell walls are made of chitin rather than cellulose.

$(i)$ They are eucaryotes, possessing cells with membranes.
$(ii)$ They can be unicellular (e.g., yeast) or multicellular (e.g., mushroom).
$(iii)$ They have no true roots, stems, and leaves.
$(iv)$ They are non-green plants, meaning they lack chlorophyll.
$(v)$ They are primarily saprophytes, while others are parasites.
$(vi)$ They store excess food in the form of glycogen.
$(vii)$ Their cell walls are made of chitin instead of cellulose.
$(viii)$ The vegetative body parts are made up of fine and delicate threads called hyphae.