Ciliate
phylum of protozoans
The ciliates are a group of protists which have hair-like organelles called cilia.
| Ciliates Temporal range: Ediacaran - Recent
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| "Ciliata" from Ernst Haeckel's Kunstformen der Natur, 1904 | |
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| Phylum: | Ciliophora Doflein, 1901 emend.
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Ciliates are identical in structure to flagella, but typically shorter and in much larger numbers. They have a different pattern of waving than do flagella.
Cilia occur in all members of the group (although the peculiar suctoria have them only for part of the life-cycle). They are used for swimming, crawling, attachment, feeding, and sensation.
