Do protists represent a group of organisms that share common adaptations and ancestry as suggested by inclusion in a single kingdom?

Question

William Albracht · Accepted Answer

Protista is most diversified kingdom but one thing is common about them: they are all descendants of first eukaryotic life that appeared on earth.

Protists are eukaryotic organisms not classified under Plantae, Animalia or Mycota (Fungi). They are mostly single-celled organisms, though multicellular/syncytial entities are also present.

Protists are included in single kingdom though they evolved along at least three distinct lines of evolution. All multicellular kingdom appeared from different groups of protists.

Despite common ancestry protists show enormous diversity in nutrition and are adapted to thrive in various environments.

Ruby Armstrong · Answer

undefined No, protists do not necessarily represent a group of organisms that share common adaptations and ancestry as suggested by inclusion in a single kingdom. Protists are a diverse group of eukaryotic microorganisms that display a wide range of adaptations and evolutionary histories. While they are grouped together in the kingdom Protista for convenience, this grouping is based more on their exclusion from other kingdoms rather than shared ancestry or adaptations.

Luna Cruz · Answer

undefined Protists do not represent a group of organisms that share common adaptations and ancestry as suggested by inclusion in a single kingdom. Protists are a diverse group of eukaryotic microorganisms that do not form a natural evolutionary grouping. They are instead classified based on their shared characteristics of being eukaryotic and non-animals, non-plants, and non-fungi. The kingdom Protista is considered a "grab bag" taxon that includes a wide variety of organisms with diverse evolutionary histories.