Algae is a term which is no longer used to officially classify organisms, but it is still informally used to refer to a group of organisms in the kingdom Protista. They possess all of the important characteristics of eukaryotic organisms; they have specialized, membrane-bound organelles and a DNA structure more complex than prokaryotes. In addition, most algae are photosynthetic, have a cell wall, and are found near the surface of bodies of water where light is plentiful. They can also form colonies. Algae may be multicellular, but we will concern ourselves only with the unicellular varieties. The first division of algae which we will discuss is found in the next section: the euglenas.
