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Algae and fungi both are an important part of the ecosystem. Both algae and fungi have similarities as well as differences. Algae are autotrophs which produce food via photosynthesis and it is a primary producer in an ecosystem. It plays a major role in the conversion of carbon dioxide into oxygen.
On the other hand, Fungi is one of the major decomposers in our ecosystem. It plays a vital role in balancing the ecosystem. But some fungi live as parasites on algae and cause some diseases to plants and animals.
| Table of Content |
Key Terms: algae, fungi, ecosystem, eukaryotic, reproduction, photosynthesis, heterotrophic organism, plants, animals
Difference Between Algae and Fungi
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| Algae | Fungi |
|---|---|
| Algae is an autotrophic organism i.e it can produce its food via photosynthesis. | Fungi is heterotrophic organism ie it depends on dead remains of plants or animals for their food |
| It belongs to a kingdom Protista and Plantae | It belongs to a fungi kingdom |
| Algae is a both Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic organism | Fungi is only a eukaryotic organism |
| The cell wall of algae is made up of cellulose which is of different elements for different species | The cell wall of Fungi is made up of Chitin and it also depends on the species |
| Food is stored in the form of Starch in algae | Food is stored in the form of oil granules and glycogen in fungi |
| Algae use vegetative, sexual and asexual methods of reproduction | Fungi follow vegetative, sexual and asexual reproduction methods |
| The nature of Algae is non-parasitic | The nature of Fungi is parasitic and saprophytic |
| All type of algae has filaments | Except for the yeast, all fungi have filaments |
| Algae cannot survive without sunlight and water | Fungi can survive without sunlight |
| It can live in water bodies, moist rocks and soils and even in some animals | It can live only on land |
| Algae has chlorophyll which is a photosynthetic pigment | Fungi don’t have chlorophyll |
| Algae are uninucleate | Fungi are multinucleated organisms |
| Algae are primary producers as many organisms depend on algae for food | Fungi are major decomposers, which helps in the decomposition of dead plants and animal remains |
| Examples: Red algae, seaweed, freshwater moss | Examples: mushroom, yeast |
What is Algae?
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An Algae is a term mentioning a group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It has chlorophyll and nucleus but no root, stem, leaves and many features like normal land plants. Algae is both unicellular (e.g. Euglenophyta) and multicellular (e.g. seaweeds). Algae do photosynthesis and help in oxygen production
Algae can live in various habitats like moist rocks, soils, water bodies (both freshwater and marine) and in some animals (e.g. Sloth). Unicellular Algae belong to the Protista Kingdom and Multicellular algae belong to the Plantae Kingdom, but formerly all algae are categorized under kingdom Plantae for their photosynthetic nature.
Algae can grow in different forms and structures. Some algae are used as foods (e.g. Agar Agar). Algae reproduce by vegetative, asexual and sexual reproduction methods.
In vegetative reproduction, fragmentation occurs. Each fragment develops into a thallus. Asexual reproduction is done by spores majorly zoospores. It is flagellated and on germination, it produces new algae. Sexual reproduction takes place with the fusion of gametes.
Classification of Algae and its Characteristics
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Algae are classified into three major categories, they are termed Chlorophyceae, Phaeophyceae and Rhodophyceae
Characteristics of Chlorophyceae
- It is commonly known as green algae and it may be fragmented, unicellular or colonial.
- This alga has a major amount of chlorophyll a and b, so it has a green colour
- It has a rigid cell wall made up of cellulose in the inner layer and pectose in the outer layer
- The chloroplast of green algae consists of one or more storage parts known as pyrenoids.
- Different species of Chlorophyceae has different shapes of chloroplast like discoid, spiral or ribbon-shaped etc
Read more : thallus
Characteristics of Phaeophyceae
- This type of algae is commonly known as brown algae and they have various sizes and forms
- The presence of chlorophyll a, c, xanthophylls and carotenoids is a reason for its colour. Its colour vary from olive green to various shades of brown depends on the amount of xanthophylls present
- The cell walls of this alga are covered with a gelatinous coating called algin
- The brown lives mostly in marine habitats and it stores food in the form of complex carbohydrates
Characteristics of Rhodophyceae
- This type of algae is known as red algae. The dominance of red pigment is the reason for its red colour
- It grows majorly in warmer areas in marine habitats as well as in deep seas where light penetration is less
- It stores food in the form of Floridian starch which is similar to glycogen in structure.
Read more : Botany
What is Fungi?
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Fungi is a heterotopic organism i.e it depends on other living or dead organisms for nutrients. It belongs to the kingdom of Fungi. It doesn’t have any chlorophyll so no photosynthesis.
All fungi as Eukaryotic organisms(Multi-cellular). All fungi except unicellular yeast have filaments. The fungi have a long thread-like structure called hyphae.
It is responsible for the vegetative growth of the fungi and the group of hyphae is called mycelium.
There are three types of fungi reproduction they are vegetative, sexual and asexual. Vegetative reproduction is done by fragmentation, budding and fission. Asexual reproduction takes place by spores.
Also Read:
Classification of Fungi and Their Characteristics:
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Fungi are usually classified into four divisions, they are Chytridiomycota, Zygomycota, Ascomycota and Basidiomycota
Characteristics of Chytridiomycota
- The chytrids have zoospores reproduction method and it is flagellated
- Mostly these species are microscopic and can cause disease in some plants and animals
- They are found in moist and wetlands and they are a parasite of algae or animals
Characteristics of Zygomycota
- Zygomycota doesn't have motile cells throughout its life cycle.
- These fungi are commonly known as bread moulds, majorly saprobes
- It has significant importance in the fermentation of food items and the production of some enzymes
Characteristics of Ascomycota
- Ascomycota is known as sac fungi and it is the largest Phylum of fungi with over 64000 species which includes unicellular yeast to cup fungi
- The special feature of this fungi is the presence of Ascus, a reproductive structure.
- One of the species of yeast is used in the food industry and mold is used in penicillin production.
Characteristics of Basidiomycota
- It is a type of filamentous fungi and it is majorly composed of hyphae.
- Reproduces sexually with a cup-shaped spore-bearing organ which is unique from other types and usually produces four spores
- Like Zygomycota, it also doesn’t have motile cells throughout its lifecycle.
Also Read:
Things to Remember
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- Algae is an autotrophic organism that produces its food via photosynthesis, where fungi is a heterotrophic organism that depends on other living or non-living organisms for their food
- Algae belong to a family of both Protista and Plantae, where fungi belong to the fungi kingdom. Algae cannot survive without light, where fungus can survive without light
- Algae are both prokaryotic and Eukaryotic where fungi are only eukaryotic.
- Algae has a cell wall made up of cellulose, where the cell wall of fungi is made up of chitin. Algae stores food in the form of starch like glucose where fungi store food in the form of glycogen and oil globules
- Algae is a primary producer in the ecosystem and it plays a major role in the conversion of atmospheric carbon dioxide into oxygen. Algae are used in various applications like food, medicine industry
- Fungi are mostly saprobes and heterotrophic which is a major decomposer of dead plants and animals in our ecosystem.
Previous Year Questions
- The integument of Cycas ovule is hard on account of…? [COMEDK UGET 2005]
- Vascular plants which produce seeds but not fruits belong to the group…? [COMEDK UGET 2009]
- Pteridophytes are also called…? [COMEDK UGET 2005]
- Which one of the following is not a character of Bryophytes? [COMEDK UGET 2006]
- Sex organs in pteridophytes are…? [CUCET 2012]
- Which of the following is not present is thallus of Marchantia? [CUCET 2012]
- Carpogonium is formed in…? [CUCET 2012]
- Syngamy is the fusion of…? [CUCET 2012]
- Mitospores of algae are differentiated by…? [CUCET 2012]
- Fucoxanthin is characteristic pigment of…? [CUCET 2012]
- Which one among the following groups of plants is placed in the beginning of…? [COMEDK UGET 2011]
- Among the following which structure is not functionally similar to others…? [COMEDK UGET 2011]
- Smooth and pegged rhizoids are present in the gametophytes of….? [COMEDK UGET 2010]
- Prothallus is…? [BCECE 2013]
- Reserve food material of algae is…? [BCECE 2006]
- Cycas belongs to gymnosperms due to…? [BCECE 2006]
- In Bryophyta, a specialized organ of the sporophyte for attachment to the gametophyte…? [UPSEE 2017]
- In Pinus, male cone bears a large number of…? [BCECE 2016]
- Coralloid root is the feature of…? [BHU UET 2008]
- 'Club moss' belongs to…? [BHU UET 2006]
Sample Questions
Ques. What are Algae and Fungi? (4 marks)
Ans. Algae are a group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms that possess chlorophyll and a nucleus. They lack certain plant features such as root, stem and leaves. Algae are both unicellular and multicellular. Examples of algae include Euglenophyta and Seaweeds.
Fungi, on the other hand, are heterotrophic organisms dependent on other living or dead organisms for nutrients. Fungi do not contain chlorophyll so they cannot conduct photosynthesis. All fungi as Eukaryotic organisms(Multi-cellular). All fungi except unicellular yeast have filaments. The fungi have a long thread-like structure called hyphae
Ques. What is the name of the study of algae and fungi? (2 marks)
Ans. The study about algae is known as Phycology and the study about fungi is known as Mycology.
Ques. What is Agar Agar? (2 marks)
Ans. Agar is a substance obtained from some species of red algae. The species of red algae used in the production of agar-agar are Gelidium and Gracilaria
Ques. In which group of fungi flagellated cells are not formed? (2 marks)
Ans. In the species of fungi which comes under Rhodophyceae, the motile cells are not formed throughout the life cycle
Ques. Which pigment of algae is not an accessory? ( 2 marks)
Ans. Chlorophyll, a pigment of algae, is not an accessory pigment because it is necessary for the photosynthesis process, so all the algae have chlorophyll.
Ques. What are any five differences between Algae and Fungi? (5 marks)
Ans. Some of the major differences between algae and fungi are:
| Algae | Fungi |
|---|---|
| Algae is an autotrophic organism i.e it can produce its food via photosynthesis. | Fungi is heterotrophic organism ie it depends on dead remains of plants or animals for their food |
| It belongs to a kingdom Protista and Plantae | It belongs to a fungi kingdom |
| Algae is a both Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic organism | Fungi is only a eukaryotic organism |
| The cell wall of algae is made up of cellulose which is of different elements for different species | The cell wall of Fungi is made up of Chitin and it also depends on the species |
| Food is stored in the form of Starch in algae | Food is stored in the form of oil granules and glycogen in fungi |
| Algae use vegetative, sexual and asexual methods of reproduction | Fungi follow vegetative, sexual and asexual reproduction methods |
| The nature of Algae is non-parasitic | The nature of Fungi is parasitic and saprophytic |
| All type of algae has filaments | Except for the yeast, all fungi have filaments |
| Algae cannot survive without sunlight and water | Fungi can survive without sunlight |
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