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KINGDOM EUKARYOMONADAE

Eukaryomonadae (yu-ka-re-o-mo-NA-de) is made of three Greek roots that mean true or good (eu -ευ); nut (karyon -κάρυον); and unit (monada -μονάδα).  The meaning is that these are that have a true nucleus.  Put another way, these are unicellular eukaryotes.

Members of this kingdom are eukaryotic protists with flattened or tubular cristae.  Presently, the kingdom is made up of three phyla: the cryptomonads, the haptophytes, and the centrohelids.  These groups seem to be sisters and form a loose clade that is a sister to the heterokonts (stramenopiles) +alveolates (Baldauf 2003). In her synthesis, though, Baldauf (2003) has the cryptomonads and haptomonads associated with the base of the typical heterokont - alveolate line in a sister group relationship.  Harper et al. (2005) use a 6-protein phylogeny of eukaryote taxa and provide further evidence of the cryptomonad+haptomonad clade and its sister relationship with the  alveolates+heterokonts.  Keeling (2004) also suggests the same relationship in a supergroup called the chromalveolates [formalized to Chromalveolata]. On the other hand, Cavalier-Smith and Chao (2003) and Nikolaev et al. (2004) suggest that the haptophytes are sisters to the stramenopiles+rhizaria+alveolata while the cryptophytes are sisters to the plants.  The centrohelid heliozoans emerge erratically as sisters of the cryptomonads (Nikolaev et al. 2004); and of the haptomonads (Cavalier-Smith 2003); so, as a convenience, I have placed them in this kingdom.  

Unfortunately, this whole "kingdom" is cobbled together of taxa that have weak associations with each other and should be seen as provisional only.   (To the Domain Eukarya Page)

A more complete taxonomy (to the ordinal level) of the Kingdom Eukaryomonadae.

Concepts and Terms.

REFERENCES.

This page written and maintained by Jack R. Holt.  Last modified: 04/22/08