Under the sea

Radiolarian Radiolaria are amoeba-like single celled organisms which are protozoans in the kingdom Protista. They secrete complicated silicate exoskeletons, called tests. These tests are usually spherically symmetrical with lots of spines radiating outward. The cell sticks out its pseudopods ("false feet") through holes to capture food. Radiolaria reproduce asexually by binary or multiple fission, meaning the cell splits into two or more daughter cells and the parent cell is lost. This is slightly different from cell division, which produces daughter cells but the parent cell remains. When Radiolarians die, their glass shells sink to the bottom of the ocean into what's called the radiolarian ooze. This gunk is what eventually forms sedimentary rock.

 

Return to home page or click related pages below...

Haw'n Sand		More Sand		Coral		Diatom		Radiolarian