Question

Which one exhibits the character of a protozoan during one phase of its life cycle and character of fungi in another phase of its cycle?
A. Water moulds
B. Psilophyta
C. Slime moulds
D. Diatoms

Answer 1

In the diverse variety of organisms on this land and water, there are some species that remain in the water only. They depend on the water for their basic requirements. They can be very primitive or complex. They are useful in the aqua economy. There are various species that have dual characteristics.

Complete answer: Protozoans will have radial, bilateral and asymmetrical cleavage. Some of the organisms have any one type of symmetry. They are primitive characters. Eukaryote has now fungi, plants, animals, flagellates, ciliates, slime moulds, etc. Myxomycetes are the class of slime moulds. They have fruity bodies having all the membrane organelles in their cell. They have a true nucleus and mitochondria.
Option A: Water moulds: they are the early fungi having a filamentous structure. They need a high amount of running water and humidity to grow.
Option B: Psilophyta : It is a tracheophyte which has combined features of ferns and Tmesipteris. It resembled Rhynia. They are the fossil plants now.
Option C: Slime moulds: They belong to Protists but have characters of both protozoa and fungi. They have an amoeboid plasmodial stage and like fungi, they can form abundant spores.
Option D: Diatoms: diatoms and desmids are the freshwater bodies. They can also be found in marine environments. They fall under the Phylum Protista. They are very small, microscopic, and float via water currents. They do not have flagella or motility on their own. They float on the water surface by the water currents.
So the answer is option C: Slime moulds

Note: Slime mould is a unicellular eukaryotic organism. Their aggregate will form reproductive structures. They were first placed in the fungi kingdom but do not belong there anymore. They feed on dead and decomposed material.