Paramecium

Habitat: Aquatic environments, typically stagnant, warm water. Size: 0.05 to 0.32 mm Phyllum: Cilliophora IUCN red list status: No Status *Paramecium* is a small single-celled microscopic organism with an elongated oval shape and pointed ends. Its body is completely covered with cilia — fine, hair-like filaments that beat rapidly, allowing the organism to move through the water. A thin, elastic membrane encloses the cytoplasm, maintaining the organism's shape. *Paramecium* lives in freshwater ponds, feeding on microscopic organisms such as bacteria and single-celled algae. Food particles are ingested into a food vacuole, where digestion occurs, and the digested nutrients are then absorbed into the cytoplasm. Undigested material is expelled through an anal pore. *Paramecium* reproduces by binary fission, a form of asexual reproduction in which the organism divides into two daughter cells. Binary fission may occur two or three times daily. However, *Paramecium* is also capable of sexual reproduction. With numerous species, most of which can be easily cultivated in laboratory settings, *Paramecium* serves as an ideal model organism for biological studies.