Domain Eukaryota Order Diplonemida Rank Family | Class Diplonemea Phylum Euglenozoa | |
Similar Calkinsia, Jakobid, Malawimonas, Euglenozoa, Carpediemonas | ||
Diplonemidae is a small group of flagellate protists, with the majority being free living phagotrophs, though some are facultative parasites. They are especially common in marine habitats where they consume detritus, algae and other particles of moderate size. Two species also live in fresh water. They are oval with two short flagella inserted in a subapical pocket. They have a highly active metabolism, with feeding apparatus arranged longitudinally and connected with the flagellar apparatus. Diplonemid mitochondria contain few very large flattened cristae, whereas most other Euglenozoa have smaller and more numerous discoidal cristae.
Classification
The group is classified in the phylum Euglenozoa based on their structural characteristics, which has been confirmed by recent molecular studies. They have a distinctive flagellar apparatus, in which the flagella, inserted inside an apical or subapical pocket, are reinforced by paraxomales rods, adjacent to normal axoneme protein scaffold. Two genera are recognized, Diplonema and Rhynchopus.