Diatom+2

Diatoms

Did you know that diatoms (a type of protist) are in toothpaste, paints, filters, and even road signs? These protists in fact make the signs along roads reflect light back at you. These protists are so extreme that they can even live in water. Protists can range from amoebas to diatoms and some are glassy figures. The diatom belongs to the protista kingdom. The protist kingdom consists of all the organisms that can be both unicellular or multicellular. They also can have a cell wall or not have a cell wall. All of the organisms are eukaryotic which means they have a nucleus. There are three kinds of protists. The first is plant-like called algae. Animal-like that are called protozoans and last is the fungus-like which consist of slime molds, water molds and also members or Euglena are also members of the protista kingdom. Diatoms are in toothpaste, paints, and can be used for other applications. Diatoms are under the protist kingdom. They are 20 to 200 microns in diameter or length. Most diatoms are unicellular, but they live in colonies. Unicellular means that they are a single cell organism. The colonies are shaped like filaments, ribbons, fans, zigzag, or stellate colonies. Diatoms are also producers. Diatoms are capable of limited movement. They have a siliceous skeleton and can be found in fresh, marine waters, soils, pretty much anywhere with moisture.



Mike, Cody, Lauren, and Kristen Period 8