What is "euglenid"

n. marine and freshwater green or colorless flagellate organism [syn: euglenoid, euglenophyte]

Euglenids (euglenoids, or euglenophytes, formally Euglenida, ICZN, or Euglenophyceae, ICBN) are one of the best-known groups of flagellates, which are Excavate Eukaryotes of the phylum Euglenophyta and their cell structure is typical of that group. They are commonly found in freshwater, especially when it is rich in organic materials, with a few marine, and endosymbiotic members. Most euglenids are unicellular. Many euglenids have chloroplasts and produce energy through photosynthesis, but others feed by phagocytosis, or strictly by diffusion. This group is known to contain carbohydrate paramylon.

Euglenoids descend from an ancestor that took up green algae by secondary endosymbiosis.